Nirit Zemora; Photo credit: Honenu
Tuesday, February 25, 2020, 15:07 On Wednesday, February 26, a deliberation will take place at the Yehuda Military Court at the Ofer Military Base at which the verdict will be handed down in the case of the terrorist who stabbed Nurit Zemora at the Etzion Bloc Intersection parking lot on October 28, 2015. This is a second verdict. Initially the terrorist was convicted of only aggravated assault, and he was sentenced accordingly. However, the Military Advocate General appealed the verdict, the Military Court of Appeals subsequently convicted the terrorist of attempted murder and therefore he must be resentenced in accordance with the more severe verdict.
Nirit Zemora, her family, and Honenu Attorney Chayim Bleicher, who is representing her as a victim of terror, will be present at the deliberation. Bleicher: “We hope that the error will be rectified now and that the terrorist will receive a more stringent penalty, which will serve as a deterrent for his fellow terrorists.”
Case summary: Hamza Faiz stabbed and seriously injured Nirit Zemora in a terror attack at the Etzion Bloc Intersection parking lot on October 28, 2015. In April 2018, the Military Court in Yehuda exonerated the terrorist of attempted murder and convicted him only of aggravated assault, because he had stabbed the victim in the back “only” once, because the knife broke during the stabbing, and according to the judges it was not possible to prove beyond a doubt that the terrorist had intended to murder Nirit Zemora.
The court ruling raised a considerable outcry and the Military Advocate General immediately announced their intent to file an appeal on the verdict. On July 16, 2018, the Ofer Military Court handed down a 14-year prison sentence and also awarded 500,000 NIS in compensation to Zemora for aggravated assault. On October 7, 2019, the Ofer Military Court of Appeals under the auspices of Judge Colonel Netanel Benisho, accepted the appeal filed by the Military Advocate General and convicted Hamza Faiz of attempted murder. The Appellate Court returned the case to the Military Court in Yehuda for resentencing Hamza Faiz.
On Wednesday, February 26, a deliberation will take place at the Yehuda Military Court at the Ofer Military Base at which the terrorist will be resentenced in accordance with the more severe verdict. The deliberation will take place before the same panel of judges who had sentenced him after the initial verdict.