Two Teens Convicted in Grisly 2014 Killing of 16-year-old Palestinian

A Jerusalem court found two Jewish teenagers guilty of murder last week but delayed its decision regarding a third defendant in the grisly slaying of a Palestinian teenager. Mohammed Abu Khdeir, 16, who was abducted in the early hours of July 2, 2014, while heading to the mosque for morning prayers in Shuafat, his village. The family alerted the police after witnesses saw him being taken. Several hours later, his charred body was found in a wooded area west of Jerusalem. He had been beaten and burned alive.

Friends and family of Mohammed Abu Khdeir demonstrate near Jerusalem court, last Monday, November 30, 2015.

Friends and family of Mohammed Abu Khdeir demonstrate near Jerusalem court, last Monday, November 30, 2015. (Photo: Activesitills)

The three racist suspects were arrested several days later. Prosecutors said they confessed involvement in the teen’s death to avenge the slaying of three Jewish teenagers who were abducted in the West Bank by Palestinians two weeks earlier. In keeping with Israeli law, the two convicted 18-year-olds were not named because the crime took place and the trial began when they were still minors. The court is expected to finalize their convictions in the near future after an additional procedural review required in the case of minors.

The court ruling held that all three of the accused committed the abduction, beating and murder of Abu Khdeir. However, the verdict in the case of Yossef Haim Ben-David, 31, described in court as the main instigator of the crime, was delayed after the defense submitted a last-minute psychiatric opinion arguing he was not fit to stand trial.

Entering the court before the ruling, Hussein Abu Khdeir, Mohammed’s father, expressed concern to reporters that the judges might clear the suspects. “They could say they’re crazy,” he said, adding that he and his wife had not slept at all the night before. Some 200 people protested outside the Jerusalem District Court during the Monday session.

Hadash MK Yousef Jabareen (Joint List), a professor of law, said the decision to delay the verdict for the central defendant was infuriating. The decision, Jabareen said, “sends a message of forgiveness to criminals that it is possible to evade the law.” “It is unthinkable that the main defendant will not pay for his crimes immediately. The Palestinian public already doesn’t have any faith in the Israeli justice system and this decision only strengthens that belief,” Jabareen said.

Lawmaker Ayman Odeh (Hadash), who heads the Joint List faction in Knesset, accused Israeli authorities of “conveying a clear message of forgiveness and understanding” of Jewish terror by declaring killers insane or withholding their names. MK Dov Khenin (Hadash – Joint List) said the case must not end without “deep soul searching” and concrete measures against organizations of Jewish far-right extremists, which he called the “engines of racist hatred.”

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Clashes in East Jerusalem after murder of Palestinian teen; MK Khenin: A wave of hatred is washing over the land