The Ministry of Health announced Tuesday that an inquisitive doctor who denies the coronavirus, is vaccinated and has been confirmed to have viral vaccination certificates has permanently lost his medical license.
Arieh Avni has a website that is popular among the Israeli antivaxxer community where he has published several articles spreading conspiracy theories about COVID-19 and the Israeli vaccination campaign, as well as mocking him. Israeli health officials again. He also runs the Correct Medicine: Dr. Arieh Avni, ”where he writes extensive posts spreading his theories.
Avni recently said that “anyone who gives a vaccine, to me, like Mengele,” refers to the famous Nazi death camp doctor.
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According to Channel 13, Avni had recently opened a clinic in Bnei Brak where it continued to spread misinformation on the virus and offered proven vaccine certificates and exemptions from wearing masks for payment.
Photo: Israel receives COVID-19 vaccine injection at mobile beach vaccination station in Tel Aviv, February 20, 2021. (Tomer Neuberg / Flash90)
According to the ruling of retired judge Amnon Strashnov, named by Health Minister Yuli Edelstein to oversee the case, Avni poses a threat to the public.
“There is no doubt that the statements are grim and clear [Avni] in articles he has published on his website, on Facebook and more recently also on YouTube, against the coronavirus vaccine, it poses a real risk to public safety and health, ”Wrote Strashnov.
“Add to this the unique, clear and unfounded views of the medical community and the heads of the Ministry of Health – which go far beyond what is reasonable and permissible in the context of freedom of expression, which is an important and protected value in any democrat. society – and you have a clear order for total anarchy, as long as it boasts the title of ‘doctor,’ ”the decision said.
Vaccine hesitancy and suspicion have been a growing concern in recent weeks as Israel’s progressive inoculation campaign has slowed.
Dozens were present at a protest in Tel Aviv last week against “coercion,” a label widely used by antivaxxers.
The protest included a number of non-wearing masks, as well as comparisons between the Israeli vaccination campaign and Nazi laws, with some wearing David’s yellow stars saying that “vaccines” did not mean to be like those which the Nazis had to spend during the Holocaust.
David’s yellow-starred Israelis say ‘no vaccination’ protest in Tel Aviv, on 15 February 2021 (Tomer Neuberg / FLASH90)
Earlier this month, Facebook announced that it had removed a major Israeli group that was promoting conspiracy theories about the vaccines that had persuaded thousands of members to hold meetings to promote it. inserting and then switching off at the last minute, forcing HMOs to discard unused doses.
Facebook said the group violated their community standards for fake news.
The group came out of the social media platform after the Ministry of Health urged Facebook to post anti-vaxxers who were bragging about their benefits. The social media giant has vowed to keep anti-vaxxers and those who spread fake vaccine information off its platform.
The group, which had more than 12,000 members, contained false information about the virus and the effectiveness and safety of the vaccines, along with conspiracy theories and attempts to stop the country’s vaccination campaign.
Days later, the social media giant slammed another group affiliated with Israeli rabbi Amnon Yitzhak who sent false news about the pandemic and the vaccines.
