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Photo: Dudu Azulai
Topaz. Apologized for past comments
Photo: Dudu Azulai
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Tibi. Moved by letter
Photo: Gil Yohanan

MK Tibi receives letter of apology from Dudu Topaz

MK gets letter of apology from late entertainer who spoke out against him following Gaza war

Knesset Member Ahmad Tibi (United Arab List-Ta'al) was surprised to discover Wednesday a letter from entertainer Dudu Topaz, labeled with a return address of: 'Section 2, Nitzan prison, Ramle' in his Knesset letter stack. The latter had sent it to him shortly before he committed suicide.

 

Tibi wrote about the letter, dated August 9, on his internet twitter account. In it, Topaz expresses regret for harsh statements made against the Knesset member and writes, "After a long process of soul searching while here in prison, I find the need to apologize to you again for the nonsense I have said about you, for my arrogance, and for hurting you."

 

Topaz added that his arrogance was among the reasons he ended up in prison.

 

The celebrity ended the letter by stressing, "My apology is sincere. Dr. Tibi, I don't need anything from you, just your forgiveness. We are all human beings, we all make mistakes," he wrote.

 

Topaz was referring to comments he had written against Tibi in a blog he kept several months prior to his arrest. "Dudu visited my house several years ago, he came to talk about the need for reconciliation between the nations," Tibi related.

 

"He was honest and serious. But during the Gaza war, just before the elections, I found out he wrote an article against me in his blog, concerning my objection to the war. He wrote he would pull my eyes out. I published a counter-article and several days later he apologized to me during a joint radio interview in an Arab station, which I accepted. I also made my forgiveness to him public," Tibi said.

 

However, it seems Topaz' conscience irked him, and a few days before he hanged himself he decided to apologize further.

 

Tibi told Ynet, "I was moved by receiving Dudu's letter. I don't know exactly when it reached the Knesset, since it is on summer recess. I have no doubt what he wrote was honest and sincere and I wish I had the chance to respond personally. I tell Dudu again today: Dudu I forgive you."

 

Investigation continues

Also Wednesday, a court session concluded the investigation of the circumstances leading up to the entertainer's suicide in his prison cell last month. 

  

During the session, police representative Commander Avi Mantzur briefed the court on the ongoing police investigation, including the collection of testimonies and evidence, and the documentation of the scene of Topaz's suicide.

 

Also in attendance were Topaz's brother Miki Goldenberg, and the mother of one of the entertainer's children, Dalia Bar Sheshet. The family's lawyer, Guy Shemer, asked investigating magistrate Hagai Tarsi grant him all the investigation's findings, Topaz's personal belongings and personal documents, including letters written by the late ratings king.

  

The attorney also requested that during the suicide investigation, "do not focus solely on the day of Topaz's deal, but examine the chain of events that took place since his first suicide attempt, including the punishments handed down to Topaz during his detainment and the medical treatment he received."

  

During the hearing, Topaz's brother Miki Goldenberg also addressed the judge, saying, "Regarding the circumstances of my brother's death, I care less about how the death happened exactly – whether it was with a wire or not.

 

"Since I spoke to him every days, I know that the amount of signals was large and on a daily basis. He would say to me, 'You know it would take me seconds to die'. I supported him every day. There was not a single prisoner that was not aware of his intentions, but I have no doubt that he was driven to it."

  

Goldenberg also complained of the Israel Prison Service's treatment of his brother, and said, "What broke him was that they told him he wouldn’t see his children until the holidays."

  

Bar Sheshet joined in saying, "Two weeks before the incident I spoke with Dudu. He said to me, 'I can't take it anymore, they are watching me closely, but I will find a way.' They heard him talking and handcuffed him to the bed."

  

Goldenberg hinted during the hearing that he had heard rumors of a letter sent by another prisoner to the prison's commanders, which talked of his brother's intention to commit suicide. "There are 4,000 other inmates still in prison," he told the judge. "It's important to draw conclusions."

 

At the end of the hearing he added, "Dudu is gone, and only his spirit is left. I hope they arrive at the correct conclusions. They need to understand how a man who was not allowed to stay with me because of a concern he would harm himself or jump out the window, how could it happen when they said they'd watch him, and they couldn't?"

 

Eli Senyor contributed to this report

 

 


פרסום ראשון: 09.02.09, 17:33
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