Poster announcing protest outside of courthouse
Wednesday, May 12, 2021, 16:50 The Central District Court in Lod rejected the appeal filed by Honenu Attorney Adi Keidar demanding the immediate release of the three detainees who defended a Jewish neighborhood in Lod during Arab rioting. The appeal objects to yesterday’s decision by the Rishon LeTzion Magistrates Court to extend the remand of the detainees by two days. The detainees will remain in remand until tomorrow. Over 500 demonstrators protested outside of the courthouse in a demand to release the detainees. The demonstrators called out “Jewish blood is not cheap” and “Release the suspects”.
Honenu Attorney Adi Keidar: “The [Lod] District Court rejected our appeal, and of course followed the mindset of the police. I think that the time has come to make order and to make a clear division. There are Jews here who are fighting for their lives in Lod. Not only are the police abandoning them, but the court is defending the abandonment by the police. You can see the results in the streets of the city below us. It is a shame that the court does not see them.
“I hope very much that during the next few days, after we bring about the release of the suspects and after the truth is revealed, that the court will not only apologize to the suspects, but will also settle accounts with everyone, who not only abandoned the residents of Lod, but also now attack the appellants themselves. I think that the police did not reply, not to even one of our claims. The fact that the Israeli Police Commissioner moved his office to Lod, but the only detainees are three Jews who do not have a criminal record, is shocking. And if that does not shock also the judges, then the situation of the judicial system is grim.”
In the appeal, Keidar wrote, “The appellants were detained yesterday in connection to an incident the previous evening during which they were forced to use their weapons in the face of unprecedented and life-threatening rioting by Arabs. It must be noted that the situation in Lod is only worsening, in part because of the powerlessness of the police who are abandoning the citizens and their property, as they did in this incident. A state of emergency has been declared in the city!
“Overnight, the rioting in the city included arson of public buildings – police departments, synagogues, yeshiva buildings – in a continuation of a similar disturbance several months ago. The scene of this incident was a closed compound in which only Jews reside. In light of the situation, the citizens organized to defend the site. During the night, an Arab mob came, threw rocks in a life-threatening manner at close range. Appellant no. 1 called the police, who did not come for over half an hour. The rioters who felt the powerlessness escalated the attack by throwing Molotov cocktails, using slingshots, and the like, which increased the danger to life. During the above-mentioned rioting the police had not yet arrived.
“The appellants are the salt of the earth who risked their lives to protect the residents [of the neighborhood], which the police were not doing. The court erred in ignoring the powerlessness of the police and the fact that until now, not even one Arab rioter has been detained! The families of the appellants who are under attack need them physically and emotionally. Leaving them behind bars is a contemptible act by the police, who are sending a permissive message to the rioting Arabs.” In conclusion, Keidar demanded the immediate release of the detainees.
See here for more posts about Arab rioting and Jewish detainees.
Honenu Attorney Adi Keidar speaking after the deliberation; Video credit: Honenu