Almost a year ago, the owner of Sydney restaurant Cairo Takeaway claimed his staff were targeted by a hidden camera set-up, in a bid to get them saying something inflammatory relating to the conflict in Gaza.
In August, the man in the cap, Ofir Birenbaum, launched defamation proceedings against the restaurant’s owner, Hesham El Masry, and staff member Talaat Yehia, claiming he was vilified and subject to an investigation by his employer after the restaurant allegedly implied he attempted to manufacture an “antisemitic incident”. The restaurant countersued, alleging that he entered the premises with journalists to “ambush” staff as part of a stunt rather than for regular dining.
While litigation is ongoing, it seems that no-one has really tried to figure out where Hesham El Masry and Talaat Yehia actually stand when it comes to Jews and Israel. Being “unapologetically and transparently pro-Palestinian” – as they characterize themselves – is one thing, but does it cross the boundary into antisemitism and/or terror support?
While I cannot find evidence of blatant antisemitism, I did find evidence of Talaat Yehia’s blatant and troubling terror support.
As for owner Hesham El Masry, I do not know. But the art on his shopfront does not exactly express “peaceful.”
Meanwhile, Yehia comments on a letter the restaurant received:
There is a bitter irony here. Yehia, who openly romanticises “armed resistance,” praises terrorist groups’ propaganda, and justifies violence as noble and inevitable, suddenly adopts the language of victimhood when confronted with a crude but non-violent letter expressing community anger. One might think that someone so comfortable glorifying bloodshed would possess a thicker skin.
In any event, with Ofir Birenbaum being sued for allegedly trying to “trap” the restaurant into saying something inflammatory, looks like no hidden cameras or elaborate “stunts” were ever necessary. One could just have looked at their employee Talaat Yehia’s social media history.
