"Terrorist act": The court convicted Jews who stabbed an Arab during the "Guardian of the Walls" | First publication

First publication: After about two years, the Jerusalem District Court convicted the four Jews involved in the stabbing of Mohammed Maatuk, an Arab worker at a restaurant in Mahane Yehuda market who was clearing the garbage. The stabbing incident took place in the background of the events of Operation "Guardian of the Walls" .

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According to the indictment, the four defendants were angry about the many attacks on Jews that took place throughout the country in those days, as well as the burning of synagogues in the city of Lod. Because of this, the four marched on Agrippa Street in Jerusalem in order to locate an Arab and attack him.

According to the stipulation in the judgment, when the four saw Ma'atuk up Agrippa Street, one of the defendants asked him, "What's the situation?" And after they heard the Arab accent in his answer, one of them sprayed him with tear gas.

The four beat Maatuk vigorously, and one of them stabbed Maatuk in the back, chest and other places on his body ten times. The horrific event took place in just half a minute.

Judge Eli Abarbanal stated in the verdict that Maatuk "did not initiate the incident. This is an innocent victim, who was attacked for no injustice by four men, and responded to the attack with courage as he defended himself against his attackers in a reasonable and proportionate manner."

It also states that "serious violence perpetrated against a random victim in the streets of the city, due to his belonging to another nation, naturally arouses fear and panic in the public in general, and especially in the part of the public that is attacked regarding his very belonging to this group. The circumstances of the matter show that the four intended their behavior to provoke fear and panic, feelings that are a natural result of any act of terrorism".

Judges Eli Abarbanal, Arnon Darel and Haya Zandberg decided to convict the four defendants – Noam Elimelech, Yosef Ben Ami, Naftali Almakais and Yosef Dahan – of the crime of a terrorist act of aggravated sabotage, as well as additional crimes each according to their part in the incident.