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Two Jewish Teenagers Found Guilty of Murdering Palestinian, 16 | Two Jewish Teenagers Found Guilty of Murdering Palestinian, 16 |
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JERUSALEM — Two Jewish teenagers were found guilty of murder by an Israeli court on Monday for their roles in the kidnapping and killing of Muhammad Abu Khdeir, a 16-year-old Palestinian who was bludgeoned with a wrench and burned to death in a Jerusalem forest in July 2014. | |
The episode enraged Palestinians and shocked Israelis, and it contributed to a spiral of violence that culminated in a 50-day war in Gaza that summer. | The episode enraged Palestinians and shocked Israelis, and it contributed to a spiral of violence that culminated in a 50-day war in Gaza that summer. |
Because they were minors at the time of the crime, the two Jewish teenagers’ names have not been made public, and the court’s verdict must be evaluated by an authorized social worker before it becomes a formal conviction, according to the state prosecutor. The court said sentencing hearings would be held in mid-January. | |
According to court papers, the two teenagers struggled with Muhammad in the back of a car while their uncle, at the wheel, shouted “Finish him off.” One of the teenagers then grabbed Muhammad’s throat and pushed down on it with his elbow, the documents said, and when his arm grew tired, the other teenager helped him keep up the pressure. | |
The uncle, Yosef Haim Ben-David, 31, is the main defendant in the case, and he, too, was found by the Jerusalem District Court to have committed the crimes he was charged with. But the court delayed a verdict for him on Monday, after his lawyer submitted a last-minute psychiatric evaluation that questioned whether he was responsible for his actions. | |
The court rulings on Monday did nothing to assuage Palestinian fury over the case, which was tried during a new wave of Israeli-Palestinian violence. At least 18 Israelis, one Palestinian and one American student have been killed in stabbing, shooting and vehicular attacks by Palestinians over the last two months. Over the same period, about 100 Palestinians have been killed, either as they carried out or attempted attacks, or in clashes with Israeli forces. | The court rulings on Monday did nothing to assuage Palestinian fury over the case, which was tried during a new wave of Israeli-Palestinian violence. At least 18 Israelis, one Palestinian and one American student have been killed in stabbing, shooting and vehicular attacks by Palestinians over the last two months. Over the same period, about 100 Palestinians have been killed, either as they carried out or attempted attacks, or in clashes with Israeli forces. |
The Jerusalem court said in a statement on Monday that the psychiatric evaluation of Mr. Ben-David was submitted only a few days before a verdict was due, “contrary to proper and appropriate procedure.” It said Mr. Ben-David’s case would be discussed further on Dec. 20. | The Jerusalem court said in a statement on Monday that the psychiatric evaluation of Mr. Ben-David was submitted only a few days before a verdict was due, “contrary to proper and appropriate procedure.” It said Mr. Ben-David’s case would be discussed further on Dec. 20. |
Asher Ohayon, the public defender who represents Mr. Ben-David, told Israel Radio that there were “real reasons” the evaluation was not submitted earlier, but did not elaborate. | |
Hussein Abu Khdeir, Muhammad’s father, who attended the court hearings, has often said that he expected Mr. Ben-David would mount an insanity defense, and that he feared that Mr. Ben-David and his young relatives would be treated with leniency. After Monday’s decision, Mr. Abu Khdeir said he had “had enough.” | |
“We want to end this mess,” he said by telephone after returning to his home in East Jerusalem. “We don’t want to see these people any more. Our blood is boiling.” He said the psychiatric report was “all an act” and that “we said from the start that there would be no justice in this case.” | “We want to end this mess,” he said by telephone after returning to his home in East Jerusalem. “We don’t want to see these people any more. Our blood is boiling.” He said the psychiatric report was “all an act” and that “we said from the start that there would be no justice in this case.” |
Xavier Abu Eid, an adviser to the Palestine Liberation Organization, wrote on Twitter that the case was “an example of how cheap Palestinian lives are for Israel.” | Xavier Abu Eid, an adviser to the Palestine Liberation Organization, wrote on Twitter that the case was “an example of how cheap Palestinian lives are for Israel.” |
The unrest touched off by the abduction of Muhammad continues to roil the predominantly Palestinian districts of East Jerusalem. A Palestinian youth identified as Ayman Sameeh Abbasi, 17, was killed late Sunday during clashes with Israeli forces in the Ras al-Amud neighborhood. The police said 10 firebombs were thrown at border officers before the officers opened fire. | |
Mr. Ben-David and his nephews were arrested soon after Muhammad was killed. The court said they acted in revenge for the abduction and murder by Palestinians of three Israeli teenagers who were hitchhiking home. | |
Mr. Ben-David and his nephews acknowledged committing the crime and re-enacted the attacks, the authorities said at the time. The three apparently acted on their own and had no known links with any group. | |
Mr. Ben-David, who ran an eyewear shop in Jerusalem and lived in the West Bank settlement of Adam, had been treated for obsessive-compulsive disorder among other illnesses, according to court documents. A pretrial psychiatric evaluation, however, found him fit to stand trial. | |