“I rewound to make sure I heard right”: Outrage over Yinon Magal’s remark about Eisenkot and his children
Yinon Magal, host of 'The Patriots' on Channel 14, faced a wave of backlash on social media after saying 'the test is who your children are' in reference to Gadi Eisenkot, a bereaved father who lost his son Gal in Gaza. Public figures and activists attacked Magal, reminding him of the price the Eisenkot family paid in the war.
Yinon Magal, host of 'The Patriots' on Channel 14, faced widespread backlash on social media following a harsh remark against Gadi Eisenkot, the former minister and chief of staff and chairman of the 'Yashar' party. During a studio discussion, Magal said: "Your test is not who your parents are - it's who your children are," referring to Eisenkot's daughter who got married on Saturday night without a rabbi and a chuppah. The remark sparked immediate uproar, especially given that Eisenkot is a bereaved father: his son, Master Sergeant (res.) Gal Eisenkot, fell in battle in the northern Gaza Strip during the 'Swords of Iron' war. Later in the war, two of his nephews also fell: Staff Sergeant Maor Cohen Eisenkot, who fell in the southern Strip a day after Gal, and Captain Yogev Pazi, who fell in November 2024 in the northern Strip. Among the responders: Meretz board chairman Uri Zaki, strategic consultant Barak Seri, media personality Chaim Rubinstein, and blogger Amir Shperling, who attacked Magal and reminded him of the price the Eisenkot family paid. The current storm joins a previous one surrounding Netanyahu's AI campaign video, in which Eisenkot was seen hugging Mansour Abbas instead of a young man resembling his son Gal.