12 oct 2019
According to his statement Netanyahu said he had twice discussed Issachar’s case with Russian President Vladimir Putin and that Israel would 'continue to exert every effort to free (her) and return her to her family'
A Russian court sentenced a U.S.-Israeli woman to seven and a half years in jail for drug offences on Friday, a ruling Israel condemned as disproportionate and which her family said Moscow had linked to the fate of a Russian citizen detained in Israel.
Naama Issachar, 25, was arrested in April while in transit in a Moscow airport, en route from India to Israel, and accused of carrying 9 grams of cannabis, her family said. Russian authorities charged her with drug smuggling.
On Thursday, Russia’s RT news channel suggested Issachar could be traded for Alexei Burkov, a Russian detained while visiting Israel in 2015. Israeli officials say the United States wants to extradite Burkov for suspected cybercrimes.
The RT report cited Burkov’s family as calling for the exchange. It said Burkov denied U.S. allegations against him.
Official sources tell Ynet that the fact that a connection was made between the sentencing of Ms. Issachar and the case of Alexei Burkov , will present further legal difficulties. "It is time to pray for Naama Issachar", the official added expressing the hope that direct conversations between Netanyahu and Putin may bring about a resolution.
Minutes before Friday’s sentencing, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ruled out any swap of Issachar for Burkov.
“Israeli justice officials have made unequivocally clear that there is no possibility of preventing Burkov’s extradition after Israel’s Supreme Court ruled him extraditable,” a statement by Netanyahu’s office said. It did not elaborate on whether such a swap had been formally proposed.
The statement went on to say: "“Israel has delivered a clear message: The punishment being demanded by the Russian prosecutor is disproportionate and does not fit the nature of the offense being attributed to Issachar,” adding that Israel would make “every effort with the Russian authorities” to bring about her release.
According to the statement, Netanyahu had twice discussed Issachar’s case with Russian President Vladimir Putin and that Israel would “continue to exert every effort to free (her) and return her to her family”.
U.S. officials had no immediate comment on either case.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry said the ruling was “heavy” and “disproportionate” given the circumstances of Issachar’s arrest - a reference to her having not intended to enter Russia with drugs.
Issachar’s lawyers say she never actually entered Russia, and that previous drug cases involving such small amounts have resulted in fines or several months of house arrest.
The sentenced announced Friday was close to the maximum eight years requested by prosecutors, who say she broke the law on Russian soil. Defense lawyers are expected to appeal.
Issachar’s uncle, Israel Cohen, described his niece as “a hostage, abducted in order to bargain for a Russian hacker”.
“As a mere (cannabis) possessor she was not in his (Burkov’s) league, so they (Russian authorities) shifted to charges of smuggling and trafficking in order to raise her value,” Cohen told Reuters.
Asked to respond to the allegation, a spokesman for Russia’s embassy in Israel said the Foreign Ministry in Moscow does not interfere in Russian judicial affairs. According to the Moscow Times newspaper, Russian authorities consider possession of more than 6 grams of cannabis a criminal offense.
A Russian court sentenced a U.S.-Israeli woman to seven and a half years in jail for drug offences on Friday, a ruling Israel condemned as disproportionate and which her family said Moscow had linked to the fate of a Russian citizen detained in Israel.
Naama Issachar, 25, was arrested in April while in transit in a Moscow airport, en route from India to Israel, and accused of carrying 9 grams of cannabis, her family said. Russian authorities charged her with drug smuggling.
On Thursday, Russia’s RT news channel suggested Issachar could be traded for Alexei Burkov, a Russian detained while visiting Israel in 2015. Israeli officials say the United States wants to extradite Burkov for suspected cybercrimes.
The RT report cited Burkov’s family as calling for the exchange. It said Burkov denied U.S. allegations against him.
Official sources tell Ynet that the fact that a connection was made between the sentencing of Ms. Issachar and the case of Alexei Burkov , will present further legal difficulties. "It is time to pray for Naama Issachar", the official added expressing the hope that direct conversations between Netanyahu and Putin may bring about a resolution.
Minutes before Friday’s sentencing, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ruled out any swap of Issachar for Burkov.
“Israeli justice officials have made unequivocally clear that there is no possibility of preventing Burkov’s extradition after Israel’s Supreme Court ruled him extraditable,” a statement by Netanyahu’s office said. It did not elaborate on whether such a swap had been formally proposed.
The statement went on to say: "“Israel has delivered a clear message: The punishment being demanded by the Russian prosecutor is disproportionate and does not fit the nature of the offense being attributed to Issachar,” adding that Israel would make “every effort with the Russian authorities” to bring about her release.
According to the statement, Netanyahu had twice discussed Issachar’s case with Russian President Vladimir Putin and that Israel would “continue to exert every effort to free (her) and return her to her family”.
U.S. officials had no immediate comment on either case.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry said the ruling was “heavy” and “disproportionate” given the circumstances of Issachar’s arrest - a reference to her having not intended to enter Russia with drugs.
Issachar’s lawyers say she never actually entered Russia, and that previous drug cases involving such small amounts have resulted in fines or several months of house arrest.
The sentenced announced Friday was close to the maximum eight years requested by prosecutors, who say she broke the law on Russian soil. Defense lawyers are expected to appeal.
Issachar’s uncle, Israel Cohen, described his niece as “a hostage, abducted in order to bargain for a Russian hacker”.
“As a mere (cannabis) possessor she was not in his (Burkov’s) league, so they (Russian authorities) shifted to charges of smuggling and trafficking in order to raise her value,” Cohen told Reuters.
Asked to respond to the allegation, a spokesman for Russia’s embassy in Israel said the Foreign Ministry in Moscow does not interfere in Russian judicial affairs. According to the Moscow Times newspaper, Russian authorities consider possession of more than 6 grams of cannabis a criminal offense.
10 oct 2019
Supreme Court rules the former high school principal - wanted by Australian police on 74 sexual assault charges, including rape - poses a flight risk after Jerusalem District Court ordered for the alleged sex-offender to be freed under house arrest
The Supreme Court overturned on Thursday a lower court order that a former Australian school principal suspected of sexual assault, and who Australia is seeking to extradite, be released from prison to house arrest.
A former high school principal has been granted release to house arrest last Wednesday and was to be released to her sister's home in the city of Bnei Brak, the center of Haredi Judaism.
Malka Leifer poses a flight risk and should remain behind bars until extradition proceedings conclude, Justice Anat Baron ruled, finding in favour of prosecutors' appeal against the Jerusalem District Court's October 2 order.
Leifer fled from Australia in 2008 with what Australian authorities believe was the assistance of the insular Adass Jewish community, after accusations against her surfaced.
A former principal of Adass Israel School, an ultra-Orthodox Jewish girls' school in Melbourne, Leifer is wanted by Australian police on 74 sexual assault charges, including rape, involving girls at the institution.
The district court ruled in 2016 that Leifer, who has denied the charges, was mentally unfit to face extradition and trial.
She was re-arrested in 2018 after a police investigation raised questions about the state of her health.
Last month, the district court, in considering extradition, said more psychiatric evidence was needed before it could decide the issue, and ordered a new panel of experts to assess Leifer's mental condition and deliver a report in December.
In August, Israeli police recommended indicting Israel's deputy health minister on suspicion he tried to pressure court-appointed psychiatrists to support Leifer's mental illness claims.
It will be up to state prosecutors to decide whether to accept the police findings and charge the politician, Yaakov Litzman, who has denied any wrongdoing.
The Supreme Court overturned on Thursday a lower court order that a former Australian school principal suspected of sexual assault, and who Australia is seeking to extradite, be released from prison to house arrest.
A former high school principal has been granted release to house arrest last Wednesday and was to be released to her sister's home in the city of Bnei Brak, the center of Haredi Judaism.
Malka Leifer poses a flight risk and should remain behind bars until extradition proceedings conclude, Justice Anat Baron ruled, finding in favour of prosecutors' appeal against the Jerusalem District Court's October 2 order.
Leifer fled from Australia in 2008 with what Australian authorities believe was the assistance of the insular Adass Jewish community, after accusations against her surfaced.
A former principal of Adass Israel School, an ultra-Orthodox Jewish girls' school in Melbourne, Leifer is wanted by Australian police on 74 sexual assault charges, including rape, involving girls at the institution.
The district court ruled in 2016 that Leifer, who has denied the charges, was mentally unfit to face extradition and trial.
She was re-arrested in 2018 after a police investigation raised questions about the state of her health.
Last month, the district court, in considering extradition, said more psychiatric evidence was needed before it could decide the issue, and ordered a new panel of experts to assess Leifer's mental condition and deliver a report in December.
In August, Israeli police recommended indicting Israel's deputy health minister on suspicion he tried to pressure court-appointed psychiatrists to support Leifer's mental illness claims.
It will be up to state prosecutors to decide whether to accept the police findings and charge the politician, Yaakov Litzman, who has denied any wrongdoing.
2 oct 2019
Former Melbourne high school principal Malka Leifer fighting extradition on grounds of mental unfitness, facing 74 counts of child abuse for allegedly assaulting three sisters over four-year period
A former high school principal wanted in Australia for alleged pedophilia has been granted release to house arrest, Jerusalem District Court ruled Wednesday.
Malka Leifer, 52, is facing trial in Australia for 74 instances of child abuse, including 13 counts of indecent assault of a minor and 11 rape charges.
The former head of Adass Israel religious girls school in Melbourne will be released to her sister's home in Bnei Brak on Friday.
Leifer fled Australia for Israel in 2008 under suspicious circumstances after the accusations against her surfaced, and is claiming that she is not mentally fit to be extradicted to stand trial.
Earlier this year, police reportedly questioned Deputy Health Minister Yaakov Litzman over claims he threatened to fire officials in his ministry if they didn't produce a psychiatric evaluation deeming Leifer unfit to stand trial in Australia.
Last week, Jerusalem District Court suspended the extradition process, saying the State Prosecution had failed to present evidence that Leifer was fit to stand trial, and ordered a fresh evaluation of her mental state.
Jewish Community Watch, an organization fighting sexual abuse of children in the Orthodox sector, slammed the decision to release Leifer, calling it an astonishing ruling.
"We were astonished at the decision to send sex offender Malka Leifer to house arrest," the organization said in a statement Wednesday.
"This is a dangerous woman who making a mockery of the courts. We regret this decision and our hearts go out to the casualties whose blood has been spilled for years."
According to the indictment in Australia, Leifer allegedly sexually assaulted three sisters who were students at the school from 2004 to 2008, taking advantage of her role as educator and the girls' innocence to do so.
The court ruling was also condemned by the Zionist Federation of Australia, which branded it "beyind belief."
“We are outraged by the latest development," said ZFA President Jeremy Leibler in a statement.
"With all that we know, and all that’s happened already, it’s beyond belief that the court would grant bail, especially given the most recent allegations that Leifer still presents a threat to those around her," he said.
"We stand in solidarity with the survivors of her abuse, and hope that this decision will be overturned on appeal."
A former high school principal wanted in Australia for alleged pedophilia has been granted release to house arrest, Jerusalem District Court ruled Wednesday.
Malka Leifer, 52, is facing trial in Australia for 74 instances of child abuse, including 13 counts of indecent assault of a minor and 11 rape charges.
The former head of Adass Israel religious girls school in Melbourne will be released to her sister's home in Bnei Brak on Friday.
Leifer fled Australia for Israel in 2008 under suspicious circumstances after the accusations against her surfaced, and is claiming that she is not mentally fit to be extradicted to stand trial.
Earlier this year, police reportedly questioned Deputy Health Minister Yaakov Litzman over claims he threatened to fire officials in his ministry if they didn't produce a psychiatric evaluation deeming Leifer unfit to stand trial in Australia.
Last week, Jerusalem District Court suspended the extradition process, saying the State Prosecution had failed to present evidence that Leifer was fit to stand trial, and ordered a fresh evaluation of her mental state.
Jewish Community Watch, an organization fighting sexual abuse of children in the Orthodox sector, slammed the decision to release Leifer, calling it an astonishing ruling.
"We were astonished at the decision to send sex offender Malka Leifer to house arrest," the organization said in a statement Wednesday.
"This is a dangerous woman who making a mockery of the courts. We regret this decision and our hearts go out to the casualties whose blood has been spilled for years."
According to the indictment in Australia, Leifer allegedly sexually assaulted three sisters who were students at the school from 2004 to 2008, taking advantage of her role as educator and the girls' innocence to do so.
The court ruling was also condemned by the Zionist Federation of Australia, which branded it "beyind belief."
“We are outraged by the latest development," said ZFA President Jeremy Leibler in a statement.
"With all that we know, and all that’s happened already, it’s beyond belief that the court would grant bail, especially given the most recent allegations that Leifer still presents a threat to those around her," he said.
"We stand in solidarity with the survivors of her abuse, and hope that this decision will be overturned on appeal."
23 sept 2019
Youngsters are told being caught with the plant, which is illegal in Europe but not Israel, will only lead to confiscation, while smugglers can be jailed for up to seven years
Ten young ultra-Orthodox Israelis, including a number of underage yeshiva students, were apprehended by French police in the past month on charges of illegally bringing the stimulant khat plant into France. Ten other Israelis are also in custody in various European countries.
Khat is a plant which is a stimulant and said to cause euphoria. It contains the alkaloid cathinone, which is similar to cocaine and that renders it an illegal substance.
The drug is not illegal in Israel and is popular among Israelis of Yemenite origin who chew its young leaves to benefit from its properties, but it can also be sold as a juice or in pill form.
According to sources in the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, predominantly young people from low income areas are lured into making "easy money" by smuggling the drug across borders.
Most of the detainees are between the ages of 18 and 27, and some are minors.
The penalty for smuggling can be as severe as seven years in prison and many of the smugglers are unaware of the seriousness of the offence. They are enticed by a free airline ticket and some NIS3,000 in spending money.
Rabbi Shlomo Bistritzky of the Chabad House in Hamburg said he heard from Israelis in custody that those who hired them for the job told them that the worst that would happen is that the plants would be confiscated.
The young smugglers are promised that they would be met immediately upon arrival, but when customs officers detained them, there were no local contacts to be found.
The youngsters were also cautioned not to contact the Foreign Ministry if they get into trouble.
Bistritzky says that those behind the illegal operation were based in London. A few were initially taken into custody but were released as the incriminating cathinone evaporates after a while and there was no evidence with which to charge them.
Those arrested in Hamburg were kept for long periods of time in jail while some of the confiscated plants - frozen to ensure all traces of their alkaloids remained - were being examined by authorities.
"It took days before they were allowed prayer shawls. They were instructed to take off their kippot when in the prison yard because of dangerous prisoners who were also incarcerated there," Bistritzky said.
The Foreign Ministry and local religious leaders have urged yeshiva students not to be tempted by such offers of a free ticket and easy cash.
Ten young ultra-Orthodox Israelis, including a number of underage yeshiva students, were apprehended by French police in the past month on charges of illegally bringing the stimulant khat plant into France. Ten other Israelis are also in custody in various European countries.
Khat is a plant which is a stimulant and said to cause euphoria. It contains the alkaloid cathinone, which is similar to cocaine and that renders it an illegal substance.
The drug is not illegal in Israel and is popular among Israelis of Yemenite origin who chew its young leaves to benefit from its properties, but it can also be sold as a juice or in pill form.
According to sources in the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, predominantly young people from low income areas are lured into making "easy money" by smuggling the drug across borders.
Most of the detainees are between the ages of 18 and 27, and some are minors.
The penalty for smuggling can be as severe as seven years in prison and many of the smugglers are unaware of the seriousness of the offence. They are enticed by a free airline ticket and some NIS3,000 in spending money.
Rabbi Shlomo Bistritzky of the Chabad House in Hamburg said he heard from Israelis in custody that those who hired them for the job told them that the worst that would happen is that the plants would be confiscated.
The young smugglers are promised that they would be met immediately upon arrival, but when customs officers detained them, there were no local contacts to be found.
The youngsters were also cautioned not to contact the Foreign Ministry if they get into trouble.
Bistritzky says that those behind the illegal operation were based in London. A few were initially taken into custody but were released as the incriminating cathinone evaporates after a while and there was no evidence with which to charge them.
Those arrested in Hamburg were kept for long periods of time in jail while some of the confiscated plants - frozen to ensure all traces of their alkaloids remained - were being examined by authorities.
"It took days before they were allowed prayer shawls. They were instructed to take off their kippot when in the prison yard because of dangerous prisoners who were also incarcerated there," Bistritzky said.
The Foreign Ministry and local religious leaders have urged yeshiva students not to be tempted by such offers of a free ticket and easy cash.
22 sept 2019
The school where the alleged rape took place
Police arrest 3 suspects after the teen claimed 4 of her schoolmates dragged her to the school's bomb shelter, tied her up, taped her mouth and took turns raping her while filming the ordeal; 'She won't eat or drink' says her father
The father of a 13-year-old girl allegedly raped by four other teens at her middle school’s bomb shelter in southern Israel says their family has been destroyed since the teen came forward with the allegations about the horrific ordeal last Friday.
Three suspects have been arrested so far in the case after the teen said she was dragged to the shelter of the school, had her hands tied and her mouth taped up. According to the complaint, two of the teens guarded the doors while the other two raped the 13-year-old. Then, the girl claims, the teens switched and those initially guarding the entrance began assaulting her while filming the ordeal.
"On Friday, she told me, 'Dad, I want to talk to you,'" said her father. "I asked her what happened. She said 'Dad, don't get upset but I’ve been raped by four boys. She hasn’t stopped crying. Her mother is heartbroken, and I just keep asking where were the school staff?"
The main suspect, a 16-year-old, was arrested on Saturday and appeared in court in the southern city of Be'er Sheba, where he denied all the allegations against him and claimed to have never met the victim. Two other suspects were detained on Sunday morning.
The 13-year-old’s family said she was an introverted and shy girl who had been sexually assaulted in the past. The family, however, didn’t make a police complaint as the accused at the time had not reached the age of criminal responsibility.
"She will not eat or drink and just walks around the house like a ghost. She said one of the boys took her to the cafeteria and from there dragged her to the shelter,” said her father.
"They have destroyed an entire family. They have murdered her and us. She’s like a zombie.”
The school counselor said she was the first person the girl confessed to about her ordeal, after noticing the girl was in distress. It took the professionals at the school nearly two hours to convince the girl to tell them what had happened to her.
The teen said she was afraid of how her relatives would react to the news and was escorted home by school personnel. On Friday, the family filed an official police complaint and the teen was taken to the child investigator.
The police said the videos allegedly recorded by the suspects during the rape have so far not been recovered.
Police arrest 3 suspects after the teen claimed 4 of her schoolmates dragged her to the school's bomb shelter, tied her up, taped her mouth and took turns raping her while filming the ordeal; 'She won't eat or drink' says her father
The father of a 13-year-old girl allegedly raped by four other teens at her middle school’s bomb shelter in southern Israel says their family has been destroyed since the teen came forward with the allegations about the horrific ordeal last Friday.
Three suspects have been arrested so far in the case after the teen said she was dragged to the shelter of the school, had her hands tied and her mouth taped up. According to the complaint, two of the teens guarded the doors while the other two raped the 13-year-old. Then, the girl claims, the teens switched and those initially guarding the entrance began assaulting her while filming the ordeal.
"On Friday, she told me, 'Dad, I want to talk to you,'" said her father. "I asked her what happened. She said 'Dad, don't get upset but I’ve been raped by four boys. She hasn’t stopped crying. Her mother is heartbroken, and I just keep asking where were the school staff?"
The main suspect, a 16-year-old, was arrested on Saturday and appeared in court in the southern city of Be'er Sheba, where he denied all the allegations against him and claimed to have never met the victim. Two other suspects were detained on Sunday morning.
The 13-year-old’s family said she was an introverted and shy girl who had been sexually assaulted in the past. The family, however, didn’t make a police complaint as the accused at the time had not reached the age of criminal responsibility.
"She will not eat or drink and just walks around the house like a ghost. She said one of the boys took her to the cafeteria and from there dragged her to the shelter,” said her father.
"They have destroyed an entire family. They have murdered her and us. She’s like a zombie.”
The school counselor said she was the first person the girl confessed to about her ordeal, after noticing the girl was in distress. It took the professionals at the school nearly two hours to convince the girl to tell them what had happened to her.
The teen said she was afraid of how her relatives would react to the news and was escorted home by school personnel. On Friday, the family filed an official police complaint and the teen was taken to the child investigator.
The police said the videos allegedly recorded by the suspects during the rape have so far not been recovered.
16 sept 2019
Operation part of joint investigation carried out with Defense Ministry department for security at weapons industries, nuclear and biological research centers and their military counterparts; details of case under gag order
Israel Police officers this week raided the Tel Aviv offices of a cyber company suspected of security offenses and fraud.
Police searched the offices of two subsidiaries of Ability Inc. and arrested several suspects as part of an investigation into alleged security offenses and widespread money laundering.
The police operation at Ability Security Systems and Ability Computer & Software Industries was part of a joint investigation carried out with the Defense Ministry's Security Authority, which oversees security for Israel's weapons industries, the Negev Nuclear Research Center, the Israel Institute for Biological Research and their military counterparts.
Details of the case, which also involves the police's Unit of International Crime Investigations, is under a court-mandated gag order.
The two Ability Inc. subsidiaries are being investigated due to alleged violations of Israel's defense export control laws, fraud, smuggling and money laundering.
Last March, the Ministry of Defense suspended the two companies' export and marketing licenses due to suspicions that they carried out defense export operations without the proper licenses.
Last year, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) considered enforcement measures against Ability Inc. after investigating the company for allegedly changing its past and future financial records, in order to persuade the shareholders of the Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) to vote for a merger of the two companies.
Ability Inc. representatives said there's no official indictment or findings against the company, the majority shareholders, or its board of directors.
Israel Police officers this week raided the Tel Aviv offices of a cyber company suspected of security offenses and fraud.
Police searched the offices of two subsidiaries of Ability Inc. and arrested several suspects as part of an investigation into alleged security offenses and widespread money laundering.
The police operation at Ability Security Systems and Ability Computer & Software Industries was part of a joint investigation carried out with the Defense Ministry's Security Authority, which oversees security for Israel's weapons industries, the Negev Nuclear Research Center, the Israel Institute for Biological Research and their military counterparts.
Details of the case, which also involves the police's Unit of International Crime Investigations, is under a court-mandated gag order.
The two Ability Inc. subsidiaries are being investigated due to alleged violations of Israel's defense export control laws, fraud, smuggling and money laundering.
Last March, the Ministry of Defense suspended the two companies' export and marketing licenses due to suspicions that they carried out defense export operations without the proper licenses.
Last year, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) considered enforcement measures against Ability Inc. after investigating the company for allegedly changing its past and future financial records, in order to persuade the shareholders of the Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) to vote for a merger of the two companies.
Ability Inc. representatives said there's no official indictment or findings against the company, the majority shareholders, or its board of directors.
