Rabbi Itamar Ben-Gal, Hy”d; Photo credit: Free use
Sunday, November 24, 2019, 15:12 On the afternoon of Sunday, November 24, the Central District Court in Lod handed down a life sentence to Abed Al Hakim Adel A’asi, the terrorist who murdered Rabbi Itamar Ben-Gal in a stabbing attack at the Ariel Junction on February 5, 2018. The court also imposed payment of 258,000 NIS in compensation to the widow and orphans.
During the deliberation at which the two sides presented claims with regards to penalization, a matter of minutes before the court was expected to hand down the sentence, the terrorist interrupted his attorney who was attempting to justify pleas for a lenient penalty, and declared to the court that he had deliberately murdered the rabbi because Israel murders women and children.
Honenu Attorney Chayim Bleicher, who is representing the Ben-Gal family and assisting them with realizing their rights as victims of terror, presented the judges of the Central District Court in Lod with an emotional letter from the parents of Rabbi Itamar Ben-Gal, Hy”d. The parents called on the judges to impose the maximum penalty on the murderer: “We ask of you that the sentence imposed on him will cause him to rot in prison until his dying day, that he will no longer see the light of day. We ask of you to rule that under no circumstances will he be included in any future bargain for the release of terrorists.”
Prior to the deliberation, Honenu Attorney Chayim Bleicher stated: “The terrorist murdered Rabbi Itamar Ben-Gal, H”yd, in cold blood. This was a great loss for the entire Jewish People. I hope that the judges rule on life imprisonment for the terrorist and deprive him of any hope that he will be released in a deal with terrorists.”