Last update - 00:00 06/11/2006
Suspect in Rahat child's murder: His father's 3rd wife
No motive given by suspect for murdering the 3 1/2 year-old resident of the Bedouin village near Be'ersheva.
By Mijal Grinberg
Bassam al-Turi, aged three and a half, was murdered on Wednesday night. His father's third wife, Sabrina al-Turi, 22, is the leading suspect.
A gag order preventing publication of the details of the case was in effect until yesterday morning, although Haaretz did publish partial information on it on Friday. The order was issued to prevent disturbances in the town of Rahat, near Be'er Sheva, where the murder took place.
On Wednesday night, Bassam's family noticed his absence and extensive police forces, reinforced by volunteers and aided by a helicopter, searched the area for the child.
However, it seemed he was much closer than everyone thought. Al-Turi had allegedly taken him to her home, which was the story circulating in Rahat on Thursday. At some point, she allegedly cut his throat.
Sources in the town say she appeared to have panicked and in an effort to hide the evidence, she apparently shoved his body into the washing machine. Later, the police found blood stains in it.
When she felt that the danger had passed, she put the body into a bag and threw it in the trash. Police said yesterday morning that during the search the body of the child was found in a green dumpster, in front of the house, in neighborhood No. 29 of Rahat.
By Thursday, Al-Turi appeared to be the main suspect, but no one dared say as much in a community where strict clan allegiance dominates.
The police had found drops of blood in her home, and after laboratory tests, Al-Turi was brought in for questioning, at which point she confessed to the crime. According to police sources, the suspect did not specify her motives.
Sabrina al-Turi is the third wife of Halil al-Turi, who has 14 children from his first wife and 10 with his second. Bassam was a child of his second wife.
Both the police and sources in Rahat reject the possibility that Al-Turi allegedly carried out the murder because she could not bear children. Halil and she had been married for a few months. Police say that Al-Turi had left her husband's home twice since their marriage. After confessing to the killing on Thursday, the suspect was remanded into custody for another 12 days. Al-Turi maintains that she does not know why she killed the child, and her attorney claimed in court that she suffered from temporary insanity. She will undergo psychiatric evaluation to assess whether she is fit for trial.