The courts are giving them light sentences; the severity of the acts increases – but nothing has changed.
The suspects charged with setting fire to the Church of Loaves and Fishes (Photo: George Ginsberg)
The number of solved cases is still negligible, the sentences handed out to Jewish terrorists are relatively light, and the government is no rush to act. One year after the attempt to declare “price tag” perpetrators as terrorists – nothing has been done.
A year ago, then-justice minister Tzipi Livni and then-public security minister Yitzhak Aharonovich asked Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to approve two unusual measures to deal with “price tag” attacks – defining the perpetrators of those hate crimes as members of a terror organization, and issuing administrative arrest orders against prominent figures, when there is evidence to back these orders.
The request was made after Attorney-General Yehuda Weinstein removed his objection to administrative arrests after he witnessed the damages caused by the so-called “price tag” attacks.
Netanyahu, who at the time was heading for elections in which he was vying for the right-wing’s votes, including those in the extreme right-wing, did not adopt the recommendations.
Apart from continuing the Shin Bet’s close monitoring of these activists and filing several indictments, no significant changes have been made. The main reason for that, according to senior law enforcement officials, is the lack of support from the political leadership, which establishes its rule using the right-wing factions.
Even the almost-sole case that did lead to a serious indictment ended faintly. Brothers Shlomo and Nahman Twito, Lehava activists who set fire to a bilingual Jewish-Arab school in Jerusalem, weresentenced to no more than two and a half years in prison. They left the court singing and smiling, and said it was “worth it.”
Incidentally, a senior IDF officer claimed in a press briefing last week that there has been a decline in the amount of Jewish nationalistic violent incidents, but stressed, even before theheinous murder in Duma, that the severity of the acts increased.
“We’re looking at 141 incidents in the first half of 2015, including violence against Palestinians and vandalism, or violence against security forces, compared to 328 throughout 2014, and 420 in 2013. But the severity of the incidents increased, and some went beyond Judea and Samaria and spread across the country,” the senior officer said.
When they turned to the prime minister, then-ministers Livni and Aharonovich wrote that the decision that was made in 2013 to define these groups as “unlawful organizations” rather than “terror organizations” – a decision initiated by Netanyahu despite the Shin Bet’s recommendation to the contrary – was not sufficient.
The youths charged with setting fire to a bi-lingual school (Photo: Ido Erez)
“We believe that the fact these criminal incidents continue and are geographically spreading to new places, require a reexamination of things. Even though the legal tools in question can be used even while these groups are defined as ‘unlawful organizations,’ defining these groups as ‘terror organizations’ will reinforce the message and the profound condemnation of their activities.”
They noted this was also the Shin Bet’s position on the issue.
Livni and Aharonovich stated that the attorney-general expressed his position at a hearing, saying that despite various difficulties, there is no legal impediment to advance the declaration of these groups as “terror organizations.” Weinstein, who strongly opposes administrative arrests in a democratic society, realized over the past year that in certain cases there is no choice but to use them.
High-ranked law enforcement officials explained that the Shin Bet knows how to map all of the activists and their different ties, but usually refuses to bring the evidence it collects in front of the court, because they don’t want to risk losing their sources. These officials claimed that due to cost-effectiveness considerations, the Shin Bet would even rather bear the local incidents rather than reveal their sources.
In addition, these law enforcement officials claimed, the Shin Bet is also averse to locking horns with politicians from the extreme right-wing. These politicians would rather turn a blind eye to such incidents because they don’t want to anger their supporters, and often use the excuse that the perpetrators of such attacks are a fringe group of “wild kids.”
On the other hand, the legal system is worried about that one attack that would not be foiled and would start up a fire that cannot be put out. Then, they fear, the accusatory finger will be pointed at them. The arson of the Dawabsheh family home could possibly be that attack.
The sources stated that on top of restraining orders and indictments, there is no other option but to take an unusual approach when investigating these “price tag” attackers. They proposed that in the initial stages, the State Attorney will prevent these detainees from speaking to a lawyer, similar to the treatment given to Palestinian detainees suspected of terror activity.
In several meetings held at the attorney-general’s office, legal officials once again emphasized that only a negligible percentage of “price tag” perpetrators are indicted because most of these attacks are sporadic in nature and because of the Shin Bet’s unwillingness to expose Jewish sources, that are hard to come by as it is.
Legal officials rejected the claim that the legal system doesn’t provide sufficient tools and does not help the Shin Bet and the defense establishment in the fight against the “price tag” phenomenon. Legal officials said that every time the Shin Bet has sufficient evidence against suspects, the legal system fully backs it. They stated that, among other things, the legal system supported proposals to issue restraining orders and placing restrictions on “price tag” suspects, as well as provided IDF soldiers with efficient arrest authorities whenever the need arose to arrest a suspect in such an activity.
The Supreme Court is also mobilizing and signaling to lower courts that the price for these “price tag” perpetrators must increase.
A year ago, Justice Yitzchak Amit overturned a decision to release two suspects on house arrest. Following an appeal by the prosecution, Justice Amit decided to detain the suspects, who were charged with attacking and beating Palestinians with a racist motive.
“This was an act that was planned ahead of time, when the gang of lawbreakers equipped itself with rods and batons and balaclavas,” he said. “They hit everywhere and even hit the head of one of them (their victims) after he had already tripped and fell. They didn’t even take mercy on the horse.”
A high-ranking legal source made it clear that the phrase “price tag” instead of “terrorism” provides legitimacy for indecisive treatment of the phenomenon. He said the perpetrators are interested in undermining the government and to deter it from evacuating illegal settlements. He argued that while the Palestinians are the victims – the real target is the elected government.
These qualities are not mutually exclusive.
Angry, annoyed, enraged, exasperated, furious, incensed, indignant, irritated, livid, fuming, mad, piqued, provoked, riled, steamed, ticked off, up in arms, and royally pissed.
Not to mention morose, dejected, depressed, dispirited, despondent, disconsolate, downcast, and glum.
No, wait. That’s how I feel about it. I am certain they feel much worse.
Obviously the “war” is a fabrication, a drama, a punch and judy show to keep fools occupied with BS distractions. the fact that some are sent to die and others die from rockets is considered collateral to the bigger picture. why do I say its a hoax? No sane government would treat the enemy terrorists who target their civilians in their hospitals during, before and after these fake wars. I am amazed that Israels do not call for an end to treatment of the enemy and a beginning of the liquidation of the enemy. Perhaps its part of that concept that Jews should be better than their enemies. for me that is a luxury I would not purchase. I would never allow my children to participate in the army of a nation that engages in medically treating the enemy leaders while sending my son to die in a war against the same enemy. Obviously the GOI holds the lives of enemy terror leaders in higher esteem than its own soldiers whom it regularly sends to perish to achieve nothing. I would hate a gov if my son died like the soldiers in protective edge and then see the enemy treated. I should not be surprised because the defense minister and president are on a lynch mob to incarcerate Jewish rights resisters and settlers in the historic jewish homeland that even the euros said was to be set aside for Jewish settlement; so why wouldn’t they hold Jewish soldiers lives to be cheap and expendable?
My only questions is whether Israeli leadership is extremely dishonest or extremely stupid. I am wondering how the parents of dead soldiers at protective edge feel, whether they believe their sons lives were well spent when seeing terrorists who killed their sons being treated in Israel? I cannot honestly say that I would love to be the better Jew and send MY son to die for such a gov and nation.
Buzz of the Orient Said:
here is one of your culprits in NA and another is the Israeli left and ultraorthodox.
Yaalon, in his continuing “Breaker Morant” charade and myth that jews firebombed a house in Duma, is doubling down on his sinister wager. In order to support and maintain his big lie which caused the revenge burning of Jews he must dig his hole deeper.
the fact is that Jews are being denied the historical rights of living in their historical homeland by a junta with no moral, legal, or historical authority to do so. Even the 2000 year abusers and slaughterers of the Jews in europe signed on with the rest of the world in agreeing that the land must be re-settled by Jews. Now that Jews have their own gov they find every BS excuse to deny Jews their rights.
The settlers are resisters and heroes just as much as the blacks resisting with civil disobedience to segregation and denial of human and civil rights. They primarily resist with civil disobedience while an immoral government continues to deny Jews their basic right to live in any part of their historic homeland and facilitates the abuse of Jews in their homeland. It is an immoral government which seeks to quell their heroic resistance with the fascist methods of their former masters.
The settlers are the real jews, the real zionists, not the liars who call themselves the zionist union and then seek to give eretz yisroel to the muslims, and not the black hats and peyot stockholm syndrome idolaters of euro idols who seek only their material benefits while denying eretz yisroel.
@ Ted Belman:
thanks
Bernard. I agree with you. You expressed your self very well.
@ adamdalgliesh:
It has been common practice that the “Jewish Sektion” of the SHABAK uses agents provocateurs to do that and other things.
P.S.My name is Adam Dalgliesh. Haven’t yet figured out how to sign my posts.
The reason why there have been so few”price tag” offenders brought to trial is not that the police are lenient with Jewish “terrorists”–far from it. They hate the Jewish nationalists. Rather, most of these crimes are probably committed by Arabs posing as Jews. Hebrew graffiti is no proof at all that “price tag” incidents were the work of Jews. Numerous Palestinian Arabs are fluent in Hebrew–especially convicted terrorists, who often use their prison time to earn academic degrees in Israeli universities. Some even have Ph.Ds from Hebrew University. And if any of the perpetrators are Jews, they probably belong to “Rabbis for Human Rights,” or any one of the other “peace camp” collaborationist organizations that join the Arabs in West Bank rioting. In fact, the “Rabbis” group has been caught faking on film faking evidence of “settler” violence and vandalism–for example, by starting fires that they then blame on the “settlers,” or encouraging Arabs to throw stones at ‘settlers,” and then filming the “settlers” when they throw stones back at the Arab provocateurs.
As for the failure of the police to crack down on supposed Jewish terrorist “organizations,” notice that the Ynet author doesn’t name even one such organization. That’s because thee police have been unable to find any such Jewish organizations. They have been unable to prove any organizational involvement in terrorism by Jewish groups. They haven’t even been able to prove that “Lehava” as an organization is implicated in “price tag” attacks. The names of other groups haven’t even come up in this connection.
The “price tag” crimes will only be solved when and if the “peace camp” oriented police stop looking in the wrong place for them and starting looking in the right places.
babushka Said:
LOL, it is hilarious to hear Barney Frank, who frequented public restrooms, and Woody Allen who had sex with his stepdaughter in his married home…. speak of ……LOL…shame! They are indeed both experienced at being shameful. I expect that many Jews are ashamed of both of them.
Buzz of the Orient Said:
are you inferring that Israel is NOT many times better than the institionalized anti semitic PA? Is your support conditioned on Israelis behaving better than everyone else(which they indeed do) ?
babushka Said:
I think the new pakistani muslim president of Jstreet said that this morning.
Buzz of the Orient Said:
Are you referring to extreme views commented here on this page? Why would some individual comments on this page cause you to lose your devotion and undying support of Israel? Do you see commenters here as indicative of the Israeli population or is your devotion and undying support fickle?
Rejoice, Buzz. We are infinitely BETTER by every rational basis of comparison. Yet we are imperfect, and liberal Jews choose not to differentiate between imperfection and evil. This convolution leads them to equate Jews who want to live and let live with Muslims who want to kill and then kill some more.
The only J Street cliche that you have omitted from your comment is, “This situation makes me feel so ashamed to be Jewish.” If you ever decide to use this charming bon mot, make sure to credit Barney Frank and Woody Allen, both of whom beat you to it.
Buzz of the Orient Said:
To what lack of justice and equal application do you refer? Please clarify. What specifically caused your “undying support” to die?
Buzz of the Orient Said:
It appears to me that north american jews are suffering becuase other north american jews are spreading lies about Israel. It is similar to the BDS church lying about Israel and then seeing their pets chop off christian heads in the ME. Perhaps the american jews who are spreading lies about Israel should double check their sources and omit Israeli leftists and haaretz. When observing the anti Israel bashing by american jews and american ultra orthodox I expected that american Jews would suffer. Disloyalty, appeasement and attempting to smear others to save yourself has been historically proven to be a failing paradigm… ask the english and french who survived chamberlain and the munich agreement.
Buzz of the Orient Said:
could you be more specific? This statement is very vague and I cant figure out your point.
Buzz of the Orient Said:
Which circumstances?
Buzz of the Orient Said:
why are Jews “supposed to be better” than those who attack them? Isnt that a double standard, a circus hoop for a circus dog to jump through, demanded by defamers, anti semites and detractors? Have you been attacked by terrorists and been better afterwards? Are you a target in Israel or are you somewhere else demanding that others behave better? I see no rational reason other than a stockholm syndrome mentality to expect Jews to be better after being abused and attacked.
Buzz of the Orient Said:
are you saying that Jews should conduct themselves primarily as to not “provide fodder” for BDS and anti semites? that how Jews look to anti semites, and others comparing jews to anti semites, is of prime importance?
Buzz of the Orient Said:
what makes it difficult for you to support Israel?
Buzz of the Orient Said:
why do north american jews beleive the obviously lying media and turn from Israel? Why do you beleive the media and turn away?
I find your comment to be a dialog with yourself and very confusing, please clean up your allusions and be more precise so that others can understand what you are trying to say
It is the extreme views of others who have commented, and it is the lack of equal justice and equal application of it that are losing my devotion to and until now undying support of Israel. These circumstances just provide fodder for the BDS and other anti-Semitic sources, make life difficult for Jewish students in American/Canadian universities, feed the anti-Semitic media support and the turning away from Israel by a huge sector of the North American Jewish community, incite the violent acts against Jews throughout the world and make it so very difficult to support Israel when we are supposed to be BETTER than those who attack us literally and figuratively instead of emulating them. I do not believe in dousing the “light among the nations”, but others are doing it.
The supreme court is part of the ongoing swindle of Jewish rights of settlement in YS and colludes in equating an enemy population with ones own tribe. Such abuse of authority by an unelected body should be changed in legislation, but BB blocked those moves.
NO! the real CRIMINAL is the GOI.
If the GOI did not facilitate the abuse of Jews on the MOunt and in Jerusalem, if the GOI took action against abuse of Jews in eretz yisroel, if the GOI immediately deported or put in detention every cleric inciting the hatred and murder of Jews there would be no jewish “terror” in Israel. If the GOI stopped the swindling of Jews in Israel by the vatican, if the GOI did not ask the Pope why he did not demand of Italy the detention of muslim terrorists for stoning saints parades and beating up children with crucifixes instead of demanding terror charges for the church arson in Israel; if the GOI did not allow the BDS churches free reign to incite global libel and roam free in Israel, if the GOI did not swindle the Jews of YS while allowing the 2000 year euro slime to build illegally in YS, if the GOI did not systematically obstruct over decades the settlement of Jews in YS as enshrined in international law, if the GOI did not allow all the same despicable behavior towards Jews in Israel UNDER THEIR CONTROL that has obtained in the past in the diaspora……. if the GOI did not engage in all these insane and despicable practices then frustrated Jews would not have to resort to vandalism, or terror or disobedience.
Its time the GOI took responsibility for allowing and facilitating the abuse of Jews and for blocking the G_D given and LON mandate given rights of Jewish settlement in YS. Blocking this right of Jews is an aberration and aberration breeds more aberration. The GOI is insane if they equate the terrorism of a sworn existential enemy with the vandalism and individual lunacy and frustration of a few Jews, absolutely insane.
My view is that there is a very DEEP streak of EVIL in anyone attempting to equate the price tag vandalism and the rare individual acts of violence with the institutionalized repeat, serial intentional violence of the sworn existential Pal enemy. Really, is Livni et al trying to equate the PA paying salaries to murderers of Jewish children, imams in mosques calling for murder of Jews, children being taught jews are sons of apes and pigs with the mostly vandalistic frustration of a few individual Jews?????? It is disgusting and despicable for these folks to declare such a concept. It was disgusting when Peres, Yaalon Herzog, gal on did the same. such people are as dangerous to the Jews as the enemies becase they give wings to lies about Jews.
Is Weinstein the god who locks up Jews without evidence? How are these individuals invested with so much power as if it belonged to them personally as royalty?
when a Jewish pinochet or Pol pot arrives at power and locks up the power abusers, disappears them and sends them on the long trail of tears should anyone be sympathetic to their plight? after all they want to lock up the dissenters on the right without evidence or trial… shouldn’t they be locked up themselves for spreading lies that vandals, and individual lunatics, are equivalent to sworn enemy terrorists? The left should not whine when they are locked up by their opposition after so disingenuously seeking to incarcerate their detractors without evidence.
this comment is part of the problem as it implies that the obviious arab false flag at duma was perpetrated by Jews on the basis of some scrawls that can be written by any taquiyya muslim. the arabs oviously killed the children as it is a typical MO of muslims NOT to avoid killing children. they even have it institutionalized in their religious dogma as honor killing and martyrdom that results in dead muslim children daily. the author of this article is a collaborator in libel which incited the pogroms of b urned Israeli Jews. when yaalon and herzog blamed jews without evidence they became responsible for the revenge burnings of Jews, shouldnt yaalon and herzog be placed in detention for inciting violence? Are they insane for taking part in a lynch mob of jews? what is the difference between them and the blood libels that led to 2000 years of murdered Jews? the knowing propagation of lies to incite the murder of jews…. we assume that yaalon did not knowingly incite the revenge burnings of jews but any criminal can claim ignorance, where is the proof that those who MUST know the truth did not intentionally incite the revenge burnings. I accuse Yaalon, Herzog and rivlin of responsibility for the revenge burning of Jews… they should be indicted.
And while talking about petty vandals, if any, lets also elect real judges and police to deal with the criminals that caused the deaths and maiming of tens of thousands on behalf of the Oslo conspiracy….