In two back to back interviews conducted on Israeli news channels this weekend, Dr. Shikma Bressler, particle physicist and somewhat reluctant leader of Israel’s anti-government protest movement, has broken her silence after three months out of the spotlight.
Bressler, who has always preferred not to give interviews, took a noticeable step back from her public activities after the traumatic events of October 7. But unlike some of the movement’s other well-known faces who have returned to their posts both on social media and on the streets, Bressler has not yet rejoined the movement in a public way.
The interviews, one conducted by Roni Kuban of Kan, Israel’s public broadcasting network, and the other by Danny Kushmaro of Channel 12 news, mark the first time Bressler has spoken to the media since the outbreak of the war in Gaza.
Both interviews center around Bressler’s response to a series of claims shared and publicized by Likud MK Tally Gotliv, which accuse Bressler of having ties to Hamas and being involved in the October 7th massacres.
Kushmaro runs down Gotliv’s accusations, pausing briefly to give Bressler the chance to respond to each one. The list includes Bressler leaving the country after October 7, erasing tweets that were related to the attacks, meeting with the head of the Mossad, and her husband holding the role of deputy head of the Mossad. Bressler goes one by one, denying each claim.
Mossad chief David Barnea and Shin Bet head Ronen Bar have both corroborated Bressler’s version and accused Gotliv of spreading conspiracy theories and endangering the lives of security personnel and their families by exposing their identities.
There is significant overlap in the two interviews, including Bressler’s thoughts on the so-called “poison machine,” a term used largely by opponents of the current government coalition to refer to the propaganda mechanism that spreads what they see as false information, fake news, and incitement.
“The poison machine never stops working,” Bressler tells Kushmaro. “It attacks whenever possible. It creates opportunities for itself. It was at work the morning of October 7, and has continued, although on low strength.”
“And then it exploded this week,” she said, referring to the aftermath of Gotliv’s tweets.
In the Kan interview, Bressler goes on to explain what she thinks is needed to overpower the poison machine. “This isn’t one person’s war,” she says. “This is a nation’s war. It won’t be won by one party winning one round in the Knesset. The entire nation has to stand up and say: ‘Enough.'”
Bressler has filed a lawsuit against Gotliv as well as five others who shared the post, for 2.6 million shekels (about $710,000).
But despite her pending libel case, Bressler believes that, ultimately, responsibility for putting an end to these kinds of conspiracy theories lies with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“The prime minister could stop all of this in a second,” she tells Kuban. “He chooses not to.”
“I think, in a certain way, it serves him,” Bressler adds by way of explanation during the Channel 12 interview. “It’s good for him to juggle a lot of options in the air all the time. And then when he needs to, to use one of them. To pull attention in a different direction. To put the blame somewhere else.”
In referring to threats she has received, primarily over social media, to her and her family, both men ask Bressler the same question: “Are you afraid?”
“Yes,” she tells them, although her answer is longer in the Channel 12 interview. “Of course I’m afraid, but I am not willing to live in a country, to raise my daughters in a country, where people are afraid to express their opinions.”