She evidently had a close relationship with her siblings, describing her sister as "the best of us" and as a person who had a great deal of compassion. In Season 10's Shell Shock (Part II), Ziva tells Tony that she goes to the opera every year on Tali's birthday, as Tali had wanted to be a singer. When Ari Haswari, her older half brother by her father, is accused of murdering Special Agent Caitlin Todd, she acts as his control officer and adamantly defends him. Her choice to fatally shoot Ari after his guilt becomes apparent in order to prevent him from killing Gibbs is often regarded as a pivotal moment for the character and a recurring subject within the show. Vance calls her motives into question in the episode "Aliyah" and charges her with acting on orders. However, Ziva later makes clear to Gibbs that she did in fact shoot her brother in order to save him, saying, "I pulled the trigger to save your life. I was "not" following orders." Though Ziva seems to feel that killing Ari was justified, she still struggles with guilt and coming to terms with his death.