Posted on 07/31/2003 11:46:23 AM PDT by yonif
The Judea Military court located near the Ofer Base outside of Ramallah sentenced Al Aksa Brigade commander Ahmed Barghouti to 13 consecutive life sentences for the murder of 12 Israeli citizens and his involvement in terrorist activities on Wednesday.
Barghouti, 27 the former driver and bodyguard of his cousin Marwan Barghouti was charged on over 52 counts that included the planning and dispatching of terrorists to perpetrate suicide and shooting attacks. In some instances Barghouti personally participated in shooting attacks.
Dressed in prison garb, Barghouti told reporters that he expressed no regrets for his acts and said had he not been caught he would have continued to orchestrate terrorist activities.
The charge sheet claimed "the accused headed a well oiled killing machine.... his aim was to kill as many Israelis as possible simply because they were Israelis."
The military court judges who presided over the trial wrote in the ruling "We are in full agreement and because of the horror are bound by the universal morals of humanity to sentence the accused the imposing of consecutive life sentences is the only fitting response to the loss of life of every person cut down prematurely by the accused.
The charge sheet claimed that in a number of cases, Marwan Barghouti was fully aware of his cousin, Ahmed's, terror activities.
According to details on the charge sheet, Barghouti from 1996 served his cousin Marwan acting as his bodyguard and personal driver.
Because of his position, Barghouti quickly became the address for other terrorists in Ramallah who he supplied weapons to that were used in attacks against Israelis on roads in and around Jerusalem. Barghouti personally participated in the shooting attack and subsequent murder of Elazar Akiva and the wounding of Yosef Cohen in January 2001.
He planned the shooting attack, which led to the murders of Sharon and Yaniv Ben Shalom, the wounding of one of their children and the death of Doron Sviri on Road 443 in September 2001. He was responsible for the murder of Meir Weisbein near Ramat Shalom in north Jerusalem the same month and the murder of Yoela Cohen who was shot as she drove her car near a petrol station close to Givat Ze'ev a month later.
During the same period he was involved in shooting and mortar attacks on the Israeli community of Psagot and attempts to perpetrate a shooting attack at the French Hill and at vehicles traveling on the Begin Highway.
Barghouti supplied weapons to three Tanzim terrorists who perpetrated shooting attacks on the road between Beit El and Psagot in March 2002.
At the beginning of 2002 he met with Nasser Aweis, a senior Al Aksa Brigade commander in Nablus and asked him to send potential suicide bombers to him. Several days later Said Ramadan met with Barghouti and expressed his willingness to carry out a suicide attack. Barghouti tended to Ramadan's needs and organized for other cell members to take him to Jerusalem where he was to perpetrate a shooting attack and kill as many people as possible.
Ramadan was taken to Jaffa Road in the city center where he opened fire on passersby killing Ora Sandler and Sarah Hamburger and wounding 46.
Days later Barghouti supplied another terrorist with an M16 and ordered him to perpetrate a similar attack in Jerusalem. Barghouti organized other cell members to take the terrorist to Jerusalem. En route, the terrorist asked to pray before perpetrating the attack. After, the cell members went to search for a location and arranged to pick the terrorist up and take him there. When they returned to pick him up he was nowhere to be found.
In February 2002 he recruited another terrorist, supplied him with an automatic weapon and hand grenades and ordered him to perpetrate a shooting attack in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Neve Ya'akov. The terrorist opened fire, killing policewoman Galit Arbiv before he was shot dead by security forces.
Less than two weeks later he recruited another suicide bomber gave him weapons and grenades and ordered his people to take him to Tel Aviv to the Sea Food market restaurant where he perpetrated an attack, killing three Israelis.
Cordially,
I cannot regard the lack of proportional punishment for murder as civilized.
It also seems to me that these murderers regard themselves as at war with Israel, so I wonder why they don't qualify for the death penalty.
Thanks for your response.
Cordially,
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