20 july 2020
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Judge lets suspects off the hook for fatally beating Haftom Zarhum, citing 'reasonable doubt'; 2 others charged in case convicted, sentenced to 4 months in prison, 100 days of community service
A soldier and a prison guard were acquitted on Monday in the 2015 killing of an Eritrean man who was shot and beaten to death by a mob in the aftermath of a terror attack after being mistaken for an assailant. video The Be'er Sheva District Court ruled that Yaakov Shimba and Ronen Cohen were not guilty of injury with grave intent in the death of Habtom Zerhom, citing “reasonable doubt.” The judge said Zerhom was “the target of rampant aggression that has no justification,” but accepted the defendants’ claim that they beat Zerhom because they believed him to be an attacker. In the October 18, 2015 attack, an Arab man armed with a knife and gun killed a soldier, stole his weapon and opened fire into a crowd at the Be'er Sheva central bus station, wounding nine. In the ensuing mayhem, Zerhom, a 29-year-old Eritrean migrant, ran into the station to seek shelter. A security guard mistook him for a second attacker and shot him. A mob, which included Shimba and Cohen, then proceeded to kick and beat Zerhom while he lay on the floor bleeding, as several bystanders tried to protect him. He later died of his wounds at a hospital. |
Yaakov Shimba and Ronen Cohen
After the killing of Zerhom, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the vigilantism. Some critics accused Israel’s leaders of fostering the charged climate, while others called for the swift prosecution of those involved in the mob.
Two others charged in the case were convicted and sentenced to four months in prison and 100 days of community service, respectively. One was ordered to pay compensation to Zerhom’s family, which is suing the government for damages.
After the killing of Zerhom, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the vigilantism. Some critics accused Israel’s leaders of fostering the charged climate, while others called for the swift prosecution of those involved in the mob.
Two others charged in the case were convicted and sentenced to four months in prison and 100 days of community service, respectively. One was ordered to pay compensation to Zerhom’s family, which is suing the government for damages.
Bar Rafaeli (left) and mother Zipi
After agreeing to a plea bargain, Refaeli to serve nine months of community service while her mother and manager to serve 16-months jail sentence; the 2 will pay a $1.5 million fine on top of back taxes owed to the state
An Israeli court convicted top model Bar Refaeli on Monday on four counts of tax offenses, capping a prolonged tax evasion case against her and her family that sullied the image of a once-beloved national icon.
Refaeli entered the Tel Aviv courthouse with a white face mask to match her white blouse. She was accompanied by her father, Raffi, her mother, Zipi, and a phalanx of lawyers. The 35-year-old Refaeli and her mother confessed to offenses of evading paying taxes on income nearing $10 million.
According to a plea bargain agreement they signed with authorities last month, Refaeli is to serve nine months of community service while her mother will be sent to prison for 16 months. The two are also ordered to pay a $1.5 million fine on top of millions of back taxes owed to the state.
The prolonged case, built around the celebrity model's worldwide income and the family's attempts to downplay her ties to Israel, damaged her well-crafted public image as an informal ambassador for the country.
Still, she remains a popular TV personality and pitch-woman whose image is ubiquitous on highway billboards throughout the country. Last year, she hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in Tel Aviv.
The heart of the case revolves around Refaeli's residence earlier this decade when she gallivanted around the world in high-profile modeling campaigns, graced the cover of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition, and had a lengthy romantic relationship with actor Leonardo DiCaprio.
Israeli tax law determines residency primarily upon whether the person spent most of the calendar year in the country. Refaeli claimed that she hadn't and therefore did not have to declare her worldwide income in certain years.
But prosecutors rejected her claim and charged her with providing incorrect tax information. For instance, Refaeli's indictment said she earned some $7.2 million between the years 2009-2012 while claiming to reside overseas to avoid paying taxes on her income.
In previous appeals, an Israeli court ruled that Refaeli's relationship with DiCaprio did not qualify as a "family unit," and therefore she could not claim his American residence to avoid paying the full taxes she owed.
Refaeli's lawyers said the plea bargain proved she hadn't intentionally evaded tax payments. Refaeli's mother, who also acted as her agent, was charged with failure to report income, avoiding paying taxes and aiding someone else in evading tax payments. The indictment said she signed leases for her daughter under the names of other family members to blur Refaeli's actual residency status and refrained from declaring her own income as her daughter's agent.
After agreeing to a plea bargain, Refaeli to serve nine months of community service while her mother and manager to serve 16-months jail sentence; the 2 will pay a $1.5 million fine on top of back taxes owed to the state
An Israeli court convicted top model Bar Refaeli on Monday on four counts of tax offenses, capping a prolonged tax evasion case against her and her family that sullied the image of a once-beloved national icon.
Refaeli entered the Tel Aviv courthouse with a white face mask to match her white blouse. She was accompanied by her father, Raffi, her mother, Zipi, and a phalanx of lawyers. The 35-year-old Refaeli and her mother confessed to offenses of evading paying taxes on income nearing $10 million.
According to a plea bargain agreement they signed with authorities last month, Refaeli is to serve nine months of community service while her mother will be sent to prison for 16 months. The two are also ordered to pay a $1.5 million fine on top of millions of back taxes owed to the state.
The prolonged case, built around the celebrity model's worldwide income and the family's attempts to downplay her ties to Israel, damaged her well-crafted public image as an informal ambassador for the country.
Still, she remains a popular TV personality and pitch-woman whose image is ubiquitous on highway billboards throughout the country. Last year, she hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in Tel Aviv.
The heart of the case revolves around Refaeli's residence earlier this decade when she gallivanted around the world in high-profile modeling campaigns, graced the cover of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition, and had a lengthy romantic relationship with actor Leonardo DiCaprio.
Israeli tax law determines residency primarily upon whether the person spent most of the calendar year in the country. Refaeli claimed that she hadn't and therefore did not have to declare her worldwide income in certain years.
But prosecutors rejected her claim and charged her with providing incorrect tax information. For instance, Refaeli's indictment said she earned some $7.2 million between the years 2009-2012 while claiming to reside overseas to avoid paying taxes on her income.
In previous appeals, an Israeli court ruled that Refaeli's relationship with DiCaprio did not qualify as a "family unit," and therefore she could not claim his American residence to avoid paying the full taxes she owed.
Refaeli's lawyers said the plea bargain proved she hadn't intentionally evaded tax payments. Refaeli's mother, who also acted as her agent, was charged with failure to report income, avoiding paying taxes and aiding someone else in evading tax payments. The indictment said she signed leases for her daughter under the names of other family members to blur Refaeli's actual residency status and refrained from declaring her own income as her daughter's agent.
Malka Leifer facing 74 charges of abusing students at Melbourne Jewish girls' school where she was principal; suspected pedophile fled to Israel in 2008 and fighting return to face charges in Australia on grounds of mental incompetence
Suspected pedophile Malka Leifer's extradition to Australia to face sexual abuse charges will be decided on September 21, 2020, a Jerusalem District Court judge ruled on Monday.
Leifer is accused of 74 counts of abusing three sisters who were students during her tenure as principal of the ultra-Orthodox Adass Israel Girls' School in Melbourne.
Monday's extradition hearing was largely procedural as the court ruled in May that Leifer was mentally competent to stand trial. Leifer attended the hearing remotely.
At the hearing, Leifer's new defense attorney Nick Kaufman asked to submit a new legal opinion asserting that Israel does not have the authority to extradite his client and claimed that she would not receive a fair trial in Australia.
Kaufman also argued that the complaints filed by Leifer's alleged victims in Australia should not be admissible because they were submitted to police and not a registrar, and she had not had chance to respond to them.
Leifer was in Israel by the time the charges were brought in Australia in 2008, having fled when claims of abuse began to surface.
She was arrested in Israel in 2014 when Australia formally requested her extradition but has spent the past six years fighting her return to face charges on the grounds of mental incompetence.
She was released in 2016 when she was found to be mentally unfit to stand trial and rearrested in 2018 when police began secretly filming her on suspicion that she had faked her mental incompetence, gathering more than 200 hours of footage showing Leifer functioning normally despite her lawyers' claims.
Kaufman hinted in a Supreme Court hearing on Sunday that he planned to argue that his client had not sexually abused her students as some of the alleged incidents had occurred when the sisters were nearly 18 years old.
The lawyer also told reporters after Sunday's hearing that Australia and Israel would have to prove that the alleged victims did not consent to the sexual acts at the center of this case.
Suspected pedophile Malka Leifer's extradition to Australia to face sexual abuse charges will be decided on September 21, 2020, a Jerusalem District Court judge ruled on Monday.
Leifer is accused of 74 counts of abusing three sisters who were students during her tenure as principal of the ultra-Orthodox Adass Israel Girls' School in Melbourne.
Monday's extradition hearing was largely procedural as the court ruled in May that Leifer was mentally competent to stand trial. Leifer attended the hearing remotely.
At the hearing, Leifer's new defense attorney Nick Kaufman asked to submit a new legal opinion asserting that Israel does not have the authority to extradite his client and claimed that she would not receive a fair trial in Australia.
Kaufman also argued that the complaints filed by Leifer's alleged victims in Australia should not be admissible because they were submitted to police and not a registrar, and she had not had chance to respond to them.
Leifer was in Israel by the time the charges were brought in Australia in 2008, having fled when claims of abuse began to surface.
She was arrested in Israel in 2014 when Australia formally requested her extradition but has spent the past six years fighting her return to face charges on the grounds of mental incompetence.
She was released in 2016 when she was found to be mentally unfit to stand trial and rearrested in 2018 when police began secretly filming her on suspicion that she had faked her mental incompetence, gathering more than 200 hours of footage showing Leifer functioning normally despite her lawyers' claims.
Kaufman hinted in a Supreme Court hearing on Sunday that he planned to argue that his client had not sexually abused her students as some of the alleged incidents had occurred when the sisters were nearly 18 years old.
The lawyer also told reporters after Sunday's hearing that Australia and Israel would have to prove that the alleged victims did not consent to the sexual acts at the center of this case.
19 july 2020
Police says it will seek to extend the remand of protester who attacked an officer in Jerusalem and 6 demonstrators accused of damaging property during Tel Aviv really; 28 arrests were made at two locations
Israeli police made a wave of arrests following mass, anti-government rallies held in Jerusalem in Tel Aviv on Saturday evening.
Thousands of protesters gathered at Charles Clore Park in Tel Aviv and in front of Prime Minister's Residence in Jerusalem with signs reading “Out of touch. We’re fed up,” in response to what they see as a bungled government response to the economic fallout from the new coronavirus.
It was the second week of demonstrations against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu government’s response, which critics say has provided too little assistance and doesn’t offer a safety net for hundreds of thousands of self-employed workers and business owners to weather the crisis.
Israel Police said 13 protesters had been arrested at Habima Square in Tel Aviv and 15 demonstrators had been detained at Paris Square in Jerusalem.
Police said they will ask the court to extend the remand of the protester who attacked an officer in Jerusalem and six demonstrators accused of damaging property during the rally in Tel Aviv.
During Saturday's protests, police used water cannons to disperse the crowd of 1,500 people around Netanyahu's residence, while in Tel Aviv, police used tear gas to try to stop the demonstrators from marching through the streets.
Reshet TV News broadcast footage of scuffles with police.
Israel appeared to have largely contained a first wave of coronavirus infections earlier this year, but a reopening that critics say was hasty sent infections soaring and the country has begun to reimpose new restrictions on gatherings. The crisis has battered the economy and sent unemployment skyrocketing.
Israeli police made a wave of arrests following mass, anti-government rallies held in Jerusalem in Tel Aviv on Saturday evening.
Thousands of protesters gathered at Charles Clore Park in Tel Aviv and in front of Prime Minister's Residence in Jerusalem with signs reading “Out of touch. We’re fed up,” in response to what they see as a bungled government response to the economic fallout from the new coronavirus.
It was the second week of demonstrations against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu government’s response, which critics say has provided too little assistance and doesn’t offer a safety net for hundreds of thousands of self-employed workers and business owners to weather the crisis.
Israel Police said 13 protesters had been arrested at Habima Square in Tel Aviv and 15 demonstrators had been detained at Paris Square in Jerusalem.
Police said they will ask the court to extend the remand of the protester who attacked an officer in Jerusalem and six demonstrators accused of damaging property during the rally in Tel Aviv.
During Saturday's protests, police used water cannons to disperse the crowd of 1,500 people around Netanyahu's residence, while in Tel Aviv, police used tear gas to try to stop the demonstrators from marching through the streets.
Reshet TV News broadcast footage of scuffles with police.
Israel appeared to have largely contained a first wave of coronavirus infections earlier this year, but a reopening that critics say was hasty sent infections soaring and the country has begun to reimpose new restrictions on gatherings. The crisis has battered the economy and sent unemployment skyrocketing.
12 july 2020
Police say at least 19 protesters were arrested following a mass rally in Tel Aviv over the government's response to economic woes brought on by coronavirus; protesters brawl with police, shouting, 'police state,' 'Bibi, resign', and set garbage bins on fire
Dozens of protesters were detained late Saturday and in the early hours of Sunday in Tel Aviv following a massive rally against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s alleged failure to address economic woes brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.
Thousands gathered at Tel Aviv's Rabin Square on Saturday evening, protesting what is widely seen as the government's failure to compensate hundreds of thousands of workers who lost their jobs as a result of restrictions and shutdowns. Unemployment has surged over 20%, and Netanyahu has seen his popularity dwindle.
Police confirmed that at least 19 protesters were arrested following the rally after they blocked major streets and interchanges to traffic as well as scuffled with the officers at the scene.
When the police began using crowd-dispersal measures, the protesters allegedly began pepper-spraying the officers as well as throwing rock and water bottlers at them, shouting, "police state,""Bibi, resign" and "this is war". Some protesters smashed the windows of a bank and set several dumpsters on fire.
Around 2am, a massive brawl between protesters and the officers erupted at Tel Aviv's Habima Square, where at least three officers were said to have been lightly wounded.
"As opposed to the protest, which took place at the start of the evening, this protest is illegal that violates public order and the rule of law," said the police in a statement following the arrests. "The police is working to disperse the rioters and will not allow the rally to continue and damage the fabric of life."
The protest was organized by unemployed, self-employed, entrepreneurs and business owners. Participants wore masks, but did not appear to be following social distancing rules. One man held a photo of Netanyahu with the words “The No. 1 Corrupt Person.”
“We are not working already nearly five months and unfortunately most of us have not received any compensation from the Israeli government and this is really a tragedy,” said Daniel Tieder, a protester. “In every country all over the world people have received compensation and support from their government. Unfortunately, here in Israel, nothing yet.”
On Thursday, Netanyahu announced an economic “safety net” promising quick relief to the self-employed and stipends over the coming year for struggling workers and business owners. The government is expected to approve the plan on Sunday.But the large turnout at Rabin Square was a sign of widespread discontent with the government’s policies.
In the face of an angry electorate, Netanyahu’s support has tumbled. A recent Midgam Research & Consulting poll on Channel 12 TV found just 46% of respondents approved of Netanyahu’s job performance, down from 74% in May.
Dozens of protesters were detained late Saturday and in the early hours of Sunday in Tel Aviv following a massive rally against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s alleged failure to address economic woes brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.
Thousands gathered at Tel Aviv's Rabin Square on Saturday evening, protesting what is widely seen as the government's failure to compensate hundreds of thousands of workers who lost their jobs as a result of restrictions and shutdowns. Unemployment has surged over 20%, and Netanyahu has seen his popularity dwindle.
Police confirmed that at least 19 protesters were arrested following the rally after they blocked major streets and interchanges to traffic as well as scuffled with the officers at the scene.
When the police began using crowd-dispersal measures, the protesters allegedly began pepper-spraying the officers as well as throwing rock and water bottlers at them, shouting, "police state,""Bibi, resign" and "this is war". Some protesters smashed the windows of a bank and set several dumpsters on fire.
Around 2am, a massive brawl between protesters and the officers erupted at Tel Aviv's Habima Square, where at least three officers were said to have been lightly wounded.
"As opposed to the protest, which took place at the start of the evening, this protest is illegal that violates public order and the rule of law," said the police in a statement following the arrests. "The police is working to disperse the rioters and will not allow the rally to continue and damage the fabric of life."
The protest was organized by unemployed, self-employed, entrepreneurs and business owners. Participants wore masks, but did not appear to be following social distancing rules. One man held a photo of Netanyahu with the words “The No. 1 Corrupt Person.”
“We are not working already nearly five months and unfortunately most of us have not received any compensation from the Israeli government and this is really a tragedy,” said Daniel Tieder, a protester. “In every country all over the world people have received compensation and support from their government. Unfortunately, here in Israel, nothing yet.”
On Thursday, Netanyahu announced an economic “safety net” promising quick relief to the self-employed and stipends over the coming year for struggling workers and business owners. The government is expected to approve the plan on Sunday.But the large turnout at Rabin Square was a sign of widespread discontent with the government’s policies.
In the face of an angry electorate, Netanyahu’s support has tumbled. A recent Midgam Research & Consulting poll on Channel 12 TV found just 46% of respondents approved of Netanyahu’s job performance, down from 74% in May.
