Jerusalem court convicts 2 Israelis in revenge slaying of Palestinian

The court however, delayed any issuing of a verdict for his case after Ben-David’s lawyers submitted a psychiatric evaluation at the last minute that raised certain doubt to his responsibility for his own actions when the crime was committed, which added to Palestinians being furious.

Palestinians protest Monday outside Jerusalem District Court, which convicted two Israelis in the 2014 slaying of Palestinian Mohammed Abu Khudair. But the accused ringleader, Yosef Haim Ben-David, 31, was not convicted due to questions over his mental state.

The Guardian headline ran: “Palestinian shot dead at Damascus gate in Jerusalem after stabbing Israeli guard”. “I am afraid that the court will release them in the end”.

Mohammed Abu Khdeir was burnt alive on July 2, 2014, a day after the burial of three Israeli teenagers who were abducted and murdered almost three weeks earlier.

Judged said one of the minors threw petrol over Abu Khdair while he was still alive, before Mr Ben David lit a match and set him on fire.

During the trial, Ben David gave mumbled responses during the proceeding and just didn’t take the stand. In a pretrial hearing, he yelled: “I ‘m the Messiah!”

67 Israeli soldiers and six Israeli civilians were killed.

Many of them have been young people, including teenagers, reflecting anger and lost hope over Israel’s occupation, the Palestinians’ fractured leadership and the complete lack of progress in peace efforts, analysts say.

Eighteen Israelis have been killed in the attacks.

Days after the three Israelis abducted Mohammed from his backyard they gave a full admission to the police.

Hamas condemned what it called “the exoneration” of Ben David, describing him as the Jewish settler who killed Abu Khdeir. Hussein said the court had already examined Ben David and said he was not insane.

The teens have not been identified because they were minors at the time of the crime. The youthful defendants asserted that Ben David gave them “pills and energy drinks”. While the harshest penalty for murder for an adult is life in prison, there is no standard maximum sentence in Israel for minors convicted of the same crimes, said Mohanned Jabara, a lawyer representing the Abu Khdeir family. But more visits by Jewish religious activists and ultra-nationalist Israeli politicians to the complex, where two biblical temples once stood, have done little to convince Palestinians.

Police believe Abu Khdair was forced into a auto near the East Jerusalem area of Beit Hannina, and his body was found around an hour later.

Monday’s convictions come amid a wave of bloodshed between Israelis and Palestinians that has left 19 Israelis and at least 98 Palestinians dead, including 63 said by Israel to be attackers. “When we try to claim we are better than our enemies… we will always have this incident as a mirror”, Corb said. “The whole world should know the criminal relationship between the Israeli murderers and the officials in the Israeli institutions and establishments”, said the statement.