Please click here for a list of posts relating to cases in which Honenu provided legal counsel to victims of antisemitic attacks in Jerusalem.
Monday, April 8, 2024, 13:01 Recently, the Jerusalem Magistrates Court awarded a Hareidi Jewish resident of the Old City of Jerusalem 40,000 NIS in compensation for an assault by an Arab in 2021. Honenu Attorney Ophir Steiner is representing the resident, who sued the Arab in civil proceedings.
The assault; Video credit: Israel Police
In the statement of claim, Attorney Steiner described the assault: “In October 2021, the plaintiff was on his way to prayers in the area of the Council Gate in Jerusalem [one of the Temple Mount gates]. When he approached the site, the defendant and a friend were there. The plaintiff was wearing clothing typical of a Hareidi Jew. When he passed the site, the defendant’s friend was washing a small motorized vehicle [mobility scooter] with a water hose. As the plaintiff approached the site, the defendant drew his friends attention to the plaintiff. In response, his friend turned his head and glanced at the plaintiff. Then the defendant took the hose and waited, with the hose shut off, until the plaintiff was a short distance from where the [the defendant and his friend] were standing. When the plaintiff was close enough to them, the defendant sprayed water from the hose, aiming the stream directly at the plaintiff. At this point, the hose was not aimed at the mobility scooter at all.
“The plaintiff, who was soaked from the water, attempted to walk away from the stream of water, but the defendant walked around the scooter, continuously aiming the hose at the plaintiff. The plaintiff tried to hide behind the corner of one of the nearby buildings. However, the defendant stopped the stream of water, walked around the scooter to its other side, and started spraying water again. The entire time, the defendant aimed the stream of water directly at the plaintiff. The plaintiff, who realized that he could not escape the stream of water, came out from behind the corner of the building and walked directly toward the defendant while holding his cell phone and calling the Israel Police. Only then did the defendant stop [spraying water].”
Honenu Attorney Ophir Steiner welcomed the court’s decision and said, “The assailant targeted a Jewish victim with a clearly Hareidi appearance. Unfortunately, the State Attorney’s Office did not prosecute the assailant in criminal proceedings, even though there was a suspicion that his motive was racial and nationalist. The victim was left no recourse other than to sue his assailant in civil proceedings. We are pleased that the suit concluded with the acceptance of the plaintiff’s claims and the rejection of the assailant’s countersuit. This case is an important example of achieving justice and establishing deterrence, especially in light of the fact that the State of Israel did not prosecute the perpetrator in criminal proceedings.”