Israel Matzav

Al-Reuters cameraman remanded until trial for inciting rock attacks

Al-Reuters proves once again that it's worthy of its name. Arutz Sheva is reporting this evening that Imad Muhammad Intisar Boghnat was arrested and charged for inciting rock attacks as a result of violent riots in the Arab village of Bil'in, in the Modi'in region, on October 6, 2006. Bil'in is right next to Kiryat Sefer, a large ultra-Orthodox town in Samaria near the green line.

A videotape that the prosecution presented to the judge shows Boghnat encouraging and directing rioters in Bil'in to throw large chunks of rock at Israeli vehicles in such a way as to cause maximum damage. The accused is heard shouting, "Throw, throw!" and later, "Throw towards the little window!"

The judge of the Judea-area military court who issued the remand order, Major Amir Dahan, called the case "borderline" for pre-trial imprisonment, but he noted that the alternative of house arrest was not wise, as Boghnat is a resident of Bil'in.

"That village is a constant source of conflict and the respondent [Boghnat] should not again be placed in such a dilemma, lest he again, Heaven forbid, disgrace himself," the judge wrote in his decision. In addition, Maj. Dahan emphasized that "above all, the accused must be cut off from camera work in tense and sensitive locales where disturbances take place." Security forces must also have easy access to Boghnat, the judge said.

Suggesting a possible explanation for Boghnat's behavior, Maj. Dahan wrote that the criminal act in question may have been perpetrated "out of the desire to mollify the villagers who know him, rather than acting as he normally does, as has been preliminarily proven, as a purely objective cameraman."

For those of you who wonder what is wrong with the Israeli court system - and in this case it's a military court - there you have it. The judge is making excuses for the accused!

Over at Little Green Footballs, Charles Johnson notes that

Emad Mohammad Bornat (note different spelling) is a good friend of the International Solidarity Movement and a cause célèbre of the morlocks at Nazimedia: Help Needed to release Bil’in photographer : LA IMC.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 1:00 AM