Israeli Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu has won a defamation suit against a predecessor who claimed he and his family were mentally ill. A judge ordered Ehud Olmert to pay Mr Netanyahu, his wife Sara, and their son Yair $18,000 (£15,260) in damages. Mr Olmert argued that he had been expressing an opinion in good faith in two Israeli TV interviews last year. But the judge rejected that defence and said he had also failed to prove the claim with a proper medical assessment. “It is impossible to ignore the fact that in Israel in 2022, referring to a person as ‘mentally ill’ is likely to demean a person in the eyes of the people or make him an object of hatred, contempt or ridicule,” Amit Yariv was quoted as saying by the Times of Israel. Mr Netanyahu’s lawyer said: “It is good to know that in a crazy and insane world where you can spread any gross and harmful lie against prime minister Netanyahu, his wife and family, clear and unequivocal boundaries were established today that have put an end to Olmert’s vile lie.”(BBC)…[+]