7 jan 2017
Police detain a 33-year-old Jerusalemite for statements he allegedly made outside the courthouse against the IDF chief of staff on the day when Sgt. Elor Azaria was convicted of manslaughter; the attorney general had instructed the police to investigate the calls to incitement that have been rife in response to the conviction.
Israel Police arrested on Saturday night a 33-year-old man from Jerusalem who is suspected of having incited to violence against IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot at a demonstration in support of Sgt. Elor Azaria on Wednesday.
The suspect allegedly was present at the demonstration outside the military courthouse when Azaria was convicted of manslaughter in the killing of the incapacitated Palestinian terrorist, Abed al Fatah a-Sharif, in March.
Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit had instructed the police this week to investigate calls to violence against Eisenkot. Protestors had been heard chanting, "Gadi, Gadi beware, Rabin's looking for a friend," referring to the prime minister who was assassinated in 1994. One protestor was recorded yelling into a microphone, "This night, you're going to die!"
The incitement to violence drew public letters of support from dozens of reservist battalion commanders, Eisenkot's predecessor, Lt. Gen. (res.) Benny Gantz, and the Association for Former Members of Sayeret Matkal. On Saturday night, several thousand Israelis participated in a rally against incitement.
The suspect's lawyer Itamar Ben Gvir said, "The suspect was summoned on Sunday for questioning and intended to arrive, but following the rally and the media's unfair criticism, the young man was arrested in a showcase of police action." He insisted that there was no reason to arrest his client.
He added, "The guy is disabled. His condition isn't good. He came to the rally in support of the soldier Elor Azaria and protested the fact that Elor, the child of us all, was abandoned. The things that were said were said during emotional turmoil, and the suspect regrets them and expressed remorse in his questioning.
"However, when Israeli Arabs wished death on IDF soldiers or expressed joy at the death of soldiers, nobody arrested them. The young man came to the rally for the army, for the nation, for a combat soldier who was abandoned on the battlefield. There's no rationale for his arrest…I'm sorry that the police are acting out of political motivations."
Israel Police arrested on Saturday night a 33-year-old man from Jerusalem who is suspected of having incited to violence against IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot at a demonstration in support of Sgt. Elor Azaria on Wednesday.
The suspect allegedly was present at the demonstration outside the military courthouse when Azaria was convicted of manslaughter in the killing of the incapacitated Palestinian terrorist, Abed al Fatah a-Sharif, in March.
Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit had instructed the police this week to investigate calls to violence against Eisenkot. Protestors had been heard chanting, "Gadi, Gadi beware, Rabin's looking for a friend," referring to the prime minister who was assassinated in 1994. One protestor was recorded yelling into a microphone, "This night, you're going to die!"
The incitement to violence drew public letters of support from dozens of reservist battalion commanders, Eisenkot's predecessor, Lt. Gen. (res.) Benny Gantz, and the Association for Former Members of Sayeret Matkal. On Saturday night, several thousand Israelis participated in a rally against incitement.
The suspect's lawyer Itamar Ben Gvir said, "The suspect was summoned on Sunday for questioning and intended to arrive, but following the rally and the media's unfair criticism, the young man was arrested in a showcase of police action." He insisted that there was no reason to arrest his client.
He added, "The guy is disabled. His condition isn't good. He came to the rally in support of the soldier Elor Azaria and protested the fact that Elor, the child of us all, was abandoned. The things that were said were said during emotional turmoil, and the suspect regrets them and expressed remorse in his questioning.
"However, when Israeli Arabs wished death on IDF soldiers or expressed joy at the death of soldiers, nobody arrested them. The young man came to the rally for the army, for the nation, for a combat soldier who was abandoned on the battlefield. There's no rationale for his arrest…I'm sorry that the police are acting out of political motivations."
6 jan 2017
A 21 year old resident of Haifa and chief suspect in murder case has turned himself in to the Akko police station; girlfriend claims he is innocent.
Several days after an intense search was begun to find the person responsible for the death of Guy Kafri in Haifa, the alleged shooter, aged 21, from Haifa, has turned himself in to the police in Akko.
Police and Shin Bet investigators have taken the man in for questioning, and have confiscated his weapon.
Investigators say that he went to his uncle and asked the uncle to accompany him to the police station. The suspect allegedly knocked on the door of his house and asked for food before going to turn himself in.
This came after residents of his neighborhood recognized him as the central suspect in the case.
The suspect’s ex-girlfriend said that she is happy he turned himself in, but claims he is innocent.
“I hope that the investigation will reveal who really did this. I’m 100 percent sure that he isn’t connected to this crime. I’m his girlfriend, and when this ends, we will be engaged.”
Several days after an intense search was begun to find the person responsible for the death of Guy Kafri in Haifa, the alleged shooter, aged 21, from Haifa, has turned himself in to the police in Akko.
Police and Shin Bet investigators have taken the man in for questioning, and have confiscated his weapon.
Investigators say that he went to his uncle and asked the uncle to accompany him to the police station. The suspect allegedly knocked on the door of his house and asked for food before going to turn himself in.
This came after residents of his neighborhood recognized him as the central suspect in the case.
The suspect’s ex-girlfriend said that she is happy he turned himself in, but claims he is innocent.
“I hope that the investigation will reveal who really did this. I’m 100 percent sure that he isn’t connected to this crime. I’m his girlfriend, and when this ends, we will be engaged.”
5 jan 2017
An image of the three judges with Hitler moustaches
54-year-old man threatens in Facebook post 'Col. Maya Heller will not finish her year' while 22-year-old woman writes: 'Take a grenade and blow up the judge and scatter all of her parts in different places, let the dogs eat her'; many others online have flooded social media with posts inciting against the judges and even calling on soldiers to rebel against the IDF.
Police have arrested a 54-year-old man from Jerusalem and a 22-year-old woman from Kiryat Gat who are suspected of inciting to violence against the judges who convicted Sgt. Elor Azaria of manslaughter.
The Azaria family came out against the posts of incitement and expressions of violence on social media, particularly those aimed at the judges’ panel.
"The family has no connection and is not responsible for anything that happens outside the courtroom and a connection between the two things should in no way be made. Obviously, the family members disagree with all expressions of violence and completely condemn them," a statement from the family said.
The Jerusalem District Police said the Jerusalem man wrote a post on Facebook "expressing radical criticism of the judges' decision to convict the soldier Elor Azaria."
He was arrested after the police received the State Attorney's Office's approval to investigate the post.
"I express my support in a full acquittal (for Azaria) and do publicly declare: Col. Maya Heller will not finish her year. 'She passes the judgment of the land and I give her the judgment of the heavens' so that all should see and beware across the generations," the man wrote in the post that was later removed.
He went on to say that "those who support the conviction of a 'soldier in God's army' will receive a bitter fate and all of the curses written in the Torah will plague them and their families until their end."
The man was put on house arrest under restrictive conditions. He is not allowed to come near Judge Heller and is barred from using any media device over the next 14 days.
The woman was questioned and released under restrictive conditions after writing: "Take a grenade and blow up the judge and scatter all of her parts in different places, let the dogs eat her. God will make her pay for everything."
"The Israel Police regularly monitors internet activity that deviates from the limits of legitimate expression of opinion and is suspected of being inciting," the police said in a statement.
"The Israel Police will not allow any incitement to violence against government and judicial institutions and will take a hard line against any publication that is considered incitement and could lead to actual harm to public officials," the statement went on to say.
After the military court found Azaria, who shot dead an already-neutralized terrorist in Hebron last year, guilty of manslaughter on Wednesday, social media has been flooded with swear words, harsh language and incitement against the head of the judges' panel, Judge Col. Maya Heller.
As a result, the IDF decided to assign a security detail to protect the three judges—Lt. Col Yaron Sitbon, Col. Maya Heller and Col. Carmel Wahabi—as well as the chief military prosecutor in the case, Lt. Col. Nadav Weissman.
Users on social media claimed that Heller was the sister of Tali Fahima, a left-wing activist who was convicted for her contacts with Zakaria Zubeidi, Jenin chief of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades and served two years in prison.
"It's a disgrace for the State of Israel to allow an Israeli hater to judge a soldier, or to judge in the State of Israel at all," one poster wrote.
Another post said: "Maya Heller, you should be ashamed of yourself. Just like you destroyed this family's joy of life and health, so will God repay you."
Yet another poster wished the judge "to be in a terror attack."
One poster lashed out against the top echelons of the defense establishment, journalist and "the Nazi judge Maya Heller."
That poster warned that "God is counting every tear shed by a mother. You will pay for this—sooner or later. God works in mysterious ways. I wish you torment. May you never have a single moment of happiness until your dying day."
Two others wished "rape and death by burning" to Judge Heller.
A Facebook page titled "Elor Azaria, the people are with you," which has 1,500 followers, was also flooded with harsh posts against the judge.
"Who are you and who gave you the right to convict Elor?" the page's managers wrote, concluding their post with "We will remember you and the prosecution eternally in disgrace. You are the Judenrat of this generation."
There were also calls for soldiers to rebel against the IDF. One poster, alongside a photo of weapons, wrote: "Elor is going to jail—we're all going to jail."
Ran Carmi-Buzaglo, one of the leaders of the public struggle for Azaria, said: "We will continue to fight with determination to release this soldier who is part of us all. The struggle is based on fierce belief in the righteousness of the way and is conditioned on appropriate behavior. We will continue to act based on the law and in accordance with the principles of democracy. Those lawbreakers were first seen at the (initial) hearing in Qastina and they appeared again nine months later. They do not, in any way, represent the spirit of the struggle."
The incitement began outside the court on Wednesday, when Azaria supporters chanted to the IDF chief of staff, Gadi Eisenkot: "Gadi, Gadi, beware. Rabin's looking for a friend," referring to the slain Israeli prime minister.
54-year-old man threatens in Facebook post 'Col. Maya Heller will not finish her year' while 22-year-old woman writes: 'Take a grenade and blow up the judge and scatter all of her parts in different places, let the dogs eat her'; many others online have flooded social media with posts inciting against the judges and even calling on soldiers to rebel against the IDF.
Police have arrested a 54-year-old man from Jerusalem and a 22-year-old woman from Kiryat Gat who are suspected of inciting to violence against the judges who convicted Sgt. Elor Azaria of manslaughter.
The Azaria family came out against the posts of incitement and expressions of violence on social media, particularly those aimed at the judges’ panel.
"The family has no connection and is not responsible for anything that happens outside the courtroom and a connection between the two things should in no way be made. Obviously, the family members disagree with all expressions of violence and completely condemn them," a statement from the family said.
The Jerusalem District Police said the Jerusalem man wrote a post on Facebook "expressing radical criticism of the judges' decision to convict the soldier Elor Azaria."
He was arrested after the police received the State Attorney's Office's approval to investigate the post.
"I express my support in a full acquittal (for Azaria) and do publicly declare: Col. Maya Heller will not finish her year. 'She passes the judgment of the land and I give her the judgment of the heavens' so that all should see and beware across the generations," the man wrote in the post that was later removed.
He went on to say that "those who support the conviction of a 'soldier in God's army' will receive a bitter fate and all of the curses written in the Torah will plague them and their families until their end."
The man was put on house arrest under restrictive conditions. He is not allowed to come near Judge Heller and is barred from using any media device over the next 14 days.
The woman was questioned and released under restrictive conditions after writing: "Take a grenade and blow up the judge and scatter all of her parts in different places, let the dogs eat her. God will make her pay for everything."
"The Israel Police regularly monitors internet activity that deviates from the limits of legitimate expression of opinion and is suspected of being inciting," the police said in a statement.
"The Israel Police will not allow any incitement to violence against government and judicial institutions and will take a hard line against any publication that is considered incitement and could lead to actual harm to public officials," the statement went on to say.
After the military court found Azaria, who shot dead an already-neutralized terrorist in Hebron last year, guilty of manslaughter on Wednesday, social media has been flooded with swear words, harsh language and incitement against the head of the judges' panel, Judge Col. Maya Heller.
As a result, the IDF decided to assign a security detail to protect the three judges—Lt. Col Yaron Sitbon, Col. Maya Heller and Col. Carmel Wahabi—as well as the chief military prosecutor in the case, Lt. Col. Nadav Weissman.
Users on social media claimed that Heller was the sister of Tali Fahima, a left-wing activist who was convicted for her contacts with Zakaria Zubeidi, Jenin chief of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades and served two years in prison.
"It's a disgrace for the State of Israel to allow an Israeli hater to judge a soldier, or to judge in the State of Israel at all," one poster wrote.
Another post said: "Maya Heller, you should be ashamed of yourself. Just like you destroyed this family's joy of life and health, so will God repay you."
Yet another poster wished the judge "to be in a terror attack."
One poster lashed out against the top echelons of the defense establishment, journalist and "the Nazi judge Maya Heller."
That poster warned that "God is counting every tear shed by a mother. You will pay for this—sooner or later. God works in mysterious ways. I wish you torment. May you never have a single moment of happiness until your dying day."
Two others wished "rape and death by burning" to Judge Heller.
A Facebook page titled "Elor Azaria, the people are with you," which has 1,500 followers, was also flooded with harsh posts against the judge.
"Who are you and who gave you the right to convict Elor?" the page's managers wrote, concluding their post with "We will remember you and the prosecution eternally in disgrace. You are the Judenrat of this generation."
There were also calls for soldiers to rebel against the IDF. One poster, alongside a photo of weapons, wrote: "Elor is going to jail—we're all going to jail."
Ran Carmi-Buzaglo, one of the leaders of the public struggle for Azaria, said: "We will continue to fight with determination to release this soldier who is part of us all. The struggle is based on fierce belief in the righteousness of the way and is conditioned on appropriate behavior. We will continue to act based on the law and in accordance with the principles of democracy. Those lawbreakers were first seen at the (initial) hearing in Qastina and they appeared again nine months later. They do not, in any way, represent the spirit of the struggle."
The incitement began outside the court on Wednesday, when Azaria supporters chanted to the IDF chief of staff, Gadi Eisenkot: "Gadi, Gadi, beware. Rabin's looking for a friend," referring to the slain Israeli prime minister.
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Woman calls to throw grenade at judge
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Post claiming Judge Heller is the sister of Tali Fahima
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Post wishing: 'May you never have a single moment of happiness until your dying day'
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Post asking: 'Who are you and who gave you the right to convict Elor?'
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Post saying: 'Elor is going to jail—we're all going to jail'
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3 jan 2017
Israel Securities Authority questions the welfare and labor minister for the second time, on suspicion of being bribed by close associate Moti Ben-Aryeh; Katz was previously questioned on suspicion of using inside information to profit NIS 290,000 at the stock market.
Welfare and Labor Minister Haim Katz was questioned under caution for the second time by the Israel Securities Authority (ISA) two weeks ago, this time on the suspicion he received bribes.
Financial advisor Moti Ben-Aryeh, a close associate of Katz, was also questioned again on suspicion of bribing the minister.
It is currently unclear what the nature of the bribes given is but Katz is alleged to have received inside information from Ben-Aryeh that enabled him to profit financially.
Katz was allegedly told by Ben-Aryeh about an impending deal between two real estate companies he has been working for since 1999, Nitsba Holdings and Airport City.
Before the deal was reported to the stock exchange, which would have led many investors to buy stocks and thus raise their value, Katz and Ben-Aryeh bought Nitsba stocks.
In order to avoid raising suspicion and to avoid having the stock's value spike before the report to the stock exchange, Katz and Ben-Aryeh allegedly bought the stocks over the course of several days.
Airport City then offered to buy Nitsba's shares from the public at 23 percent over the price it was being traded for at the time.
As a result, Katz and Ben-Aryeh have allegedly made NIS 290,000 in profit when Airport City bought the stocks from them.
The ISA defined Ben-Aryeh as someone with very close social and business ties to Katz. He is also considered a close associate of billionaire Kobi Maimon and advises companies controlled by Maimon.
Maimon controls both Nitsba and Airport City and also has dealings in the natural gas business. He is also considered a close associate of Katz, as well as of Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon.
Because of their ties to Maimon, both Kahlon and Katz opted out of voting on Knesset and government decisions relating to the natural gas plan.
The ISA is an investigative body with enforcement authorities that has been using advanced systems recently to identify insider trading and fraud.
It first questioned Katz, who cooperated with investigators, last May on the suspicion he used insider information to profit from trading securities.
The questioning, which received the approval of the attorney general, was accompanied by the Tel Aviv District Attorney's Taxation and Economics Department.
Ben-Aryeh was arrested and then released under restrictive conditions. He was barred from leaving the country and his bail was set at NIS 1 million.
Both Katz and Ben-Aryeh have denied the allegations made against them.
The minister said on Monday, "I regret the fact that half-truths and disinformation are being leaked to the press in an effort to hurt my good name. I'm certain that the clouds hanging over my head will disappear and I will not be accused of any wrongdoing. I said what I had to say to the investigators, fully cooperating, and have yet to see fit to hire a lawyer."
The ISA declined comment on the report.
Welfare and Labor Minister Haim Katz was questioned under caution for the second time by the Israel Securities Authority (ISA) two weeks ago, this time on the suspicion he received bribes.
Financial advisor Moti Ben-Aryeh, a close associate of Katz, was also questioned again on suspicion of bribing the minister.
It is currently unclear what the nature of the bribes given is but Katz is alleged to have received inside information from Ben-Aryeh that enabled him to profit financially.
Katz was allegedly told by Ben-Aryeh about an impending deal between two real estate companies he has been working for since 1999, Nitsba Holdings and Airport City.
Before the deal was reported to the stock exchange, which would have led many investors to buy stocks and thus raise their value, Katz and Ben-Aryeh bought Nitsba stocks.
In order to avoid raising suspicion and to avoid having the stock's value spike before the report to the stock exchange, Katz and Ben-Aryeh allegedly bought the stocks over the course of several days.
Airport City then offered to buy Nitsba's shares from the public at 23 percent over the price it was being traded for at the time.
As a result, Katz and Ben-Aryeh have allegedly made NIS 290,000 in profit when Airport City bought the stocks from them.
The ISA defined Ben-Aryeh as someone with very close social and business ties to Katz. He is also considered a close associate of billionaire Kobi Maimon and advises companies controlled by Maimon.
Maimon controls both Nitsba and Airport City and also has dealings in the natural gas business. He is also considered a close associate of Katz, as well as of Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon.
Because of their ties to Maimon, both Kahlon and Katz opted out of voting on Knesset and government decisions relating to the natural gas plan.
The ISA is an investigative body with enforcement authorities that has been using advanced systems recently to identify insider trading and fraud.
It first questioned Katz, who cooperated with investigators, last May on the suspicion he used insider information to profit from trading securities.
The questioning, which received the approval of the attorney general, was accompanied by the Tel Aviv District Attorney's Taxation and Economics Department.
Ben-Aryeh was arrested and then released under restrictive conditions. He was barred from leaving the country and his bail was set at NIS 1 million.
Both Katz and Ben-Aryeh have denied the allegations made against them.
The minister said on Monday, "I regret the fact that half-truths and disinformation are being leaked to the press in an effort to hurt my good name. I'm certain that the clouds hanging over my head will disappear and I will not be accused of any wrongdoing. I said what I had to say to the investigators, fully cooperating, and have yet to see fit to hire a lawyer."
The ISA declined comment on the report.
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