Israeli Arab who spied for Hezbollah jailed for nine years
Ameer Makhoul was detained by the Shin Bet and police anti-terror units last May; struck plea bargain with prosecution.
By Jack Khoury Tags: Israel news Israeli ArabThe Haifa District Court on Sunday sentenced Israeli Arab activist Ameer Makhoul to nine years in prison and another year suspended sentence for charges of spying and contact with a foreign agent from the Lebanon-based Hezbollah militant organization.
Makhoul's lawyers struck a plea bargain with the prosecution in October 2010, in which they asked for a reduced sentence of seven years, while the prosecution asked for 10 years - the maximum sentence for the charges against him.
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Israeli Arab activist Ameer Makhoul in court, January 30, 2011, where he was jailed for spying for Hezbollah. |
| Photo by: Hagai Frid |
The verdict stated that Makhoul handed intelligence to a Hezbollah agent on Shin Bet installations in the Haifa region and on Mossad offices in the center of the country. He also attempted, the verdict said, to pass on information about a military base and sought details about the residence of Shin Bet chief Yuval Diskin.
Makhoul, director general of the charity Ittijah (Union of Arab Community-Based Associations), was detained by the Shin Bet security services and police anti-terror units on May 6, along with fellow Israeli Arab activist Omar Saeed.
Saeed struck a plea bargain in August, under which he will be charged with working for an illegal organization, a crime that carries a punishment of several months' jail-time.
Upon his arrest, Makhoul was kept from meeting with a lawyer or speaking with his family for nearly two weeks, during which he confessed to the accusations. His lawyers later claimed the confession was coerced. They were finally allowed access to Makhoul only after threatening to boycott a hearing.
Makhoul, a veteran activist well-known among Arab charities and NGOs, was a regular participant in conferences on discrimination in Israel and abroad and has been a virulent critic of government policy.
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If he had been an Arab, he would have probably got life.
So-called security charges against Palestinian citizens of Israel lead to conviction in almost 100% of cases. What choice did Ameer have but to plead guilty, strike a plea bargain in order not to spend the rest of his life in prison? Ameer, we are with you and as Egypt and Tunisia (most recently!) show, injustice does not last forever!
When "a spy" gets caught in Lebanon or Iran, they get executed immediately. At least in Israel they get a fair trial, and a prison sentence. Democracy at work.
You call that a "fair trial"? In any truly democratic nation, such "evidence" obtained under duress, without the presence of a lawyer and after such a long arrest without presenting charges (ever heard of "habeas corpus"?) would have been flushed down the toilet, where it belongs. There is no democracy for Arabs in Israel.
ameer was under torture from the beginning and he just signed but they wanted him to sign.. fake justice, fake trial, fake democracy what you have
Sort of like the Iranian Jews arrested anytime the government needs a show trial? How convenient a civil rights activist held incommunicado could be persuaded into 'confessing' to spying.
They knew what evidence the prosecution had. A plea bargain was their best option under the circumstances. As a self annointed expert on Pollard maybe you can enlighten us on what Pollard actually did. The proceedings of the open trial will do.
You need to be careful who you respond to when someone says good morning or asks for directions. Oh wait! This guy's a rights activist, isn't he? Never mind then - that's all it takes.
it is illegal to be from the left or to defend human rights.. only the human rights for the jews or the good israelis can be defended
Arab Israeli - 7 years Israeli - several months
Israelis or jewish charged of spying are setenced to death in Iran, to life time prison in the US (Pollard), ... while in Israel spies like Makhoul, who endanger the whole Israeli population (Arabs, Jews and other) by contact with terrorist organizations, that swear to destroy Israel, like Hezbollah, are only sentenced to several years of prison. Indeed, it is a another fine example.
Compared to what spies would get in Arab countries (mostly death sentences), Makhoul's sentence is a picnic with free room and board, TV, radios, newspapers, and vistations. Enjoy it, buddy.