The case was a lawsuit brought by Magen David Adom (MDA) against United Hatzalah over claims that it had defamed the national first responder organization. MDA brought an NIS 2.6 million suit against Hatzalah although the judge ruled that the organization only needs to pay NIS 250,000.
Hatzalah hailed the court’s decision to deny MDA 90% of the remedy it sought.
Magen David Adom’s lawsuit was reportedly based on statements made by a number of United Hatzalah's volunteers in the course of a protest arguing that MDA refused to share pertinent information regarding the location of people who called for emergency medical assistance back in 2018.
In a statement, MDA said that "the verdict speaks for itself, and we welcome the court's ruling and are happy that the truth has finally come to light. We are sorry that it had to come to legal action, but we cannot abide by besmirching the good name of MDA and the good names of thousands of its employers and volunteers that work day and night to save lives."
On the other hand, President and Founder of United Hatzalah, Eli Beer said: “We are happy that this is over and that we can return to focusing on our mission which is saving lives. We are saddened that public money that is intended to save lives is being needlessly wasted in legal proceedings. I agree with what Judge Shiloh wrote in his decision: ‘It is upon the parties to stop their arguing and fighting, resheath their swords, and focus only on saving lives and not to waste their money, (which emanates from public funds and or donations) on litigation instead of purchasing lifesaving medical equipment.’”
“Sadly, in our efforts to make the lives of all Israeli citizens better and save their lives, we have been dragged into this legal battle by MDA. I am pleased that the court recognized the importance of the lifesaving work done by United Hatzalah’s network of volunteers. We will continue to do everything we can to save as many lives as we can while working together with all relevant parties who are involved in such work,” he concluded.