A Haifa court sentenced Jamal Mahajana, the 50-year-old resident of the Israeli Arab town of Umm al-Fahm who was accused of driving a female terrorist to Haifa, where she blew herself up in a restaurant, to 10 years in prison and another two years suspended sentence.
Mahajana was convicted of criminal negligence causing death and driving illegal inhabitants into Israel.
In August the court cleared him of charges he allegedly aided the female Palestinian suicide bomber in 2003, but indicted him for criminal negligence causing death and driving illegal inhabitants into Israel.
The judges said in their ruling, “In his illegal and continuous activity of driving illegal inhabitants, the defendant was an important
and vital link in the ‘chain of death,’ or the series of deadly attacks that killed and wounded many.”
On Saturday, October 4, 2003, Mahajana drove the female suicide bomber from Bartaa to Haifa. The bomber, Hanadi Jaradat, a 29-year-old attorney from the West Bank town of Jenin, blew herself up in “Maksim” restaurant. 21 people were killed and dozens of others were wounded in the attack.
Relatives of the bombing victims were infuriated with the sentence that was handed down.
Ora Regev, the mother of one of the bombing victims was infuriated at the sentence and at the judges demand that the victims’ families to restrain themselves despite their disapproval of the sentence that was handed down.
“My son is in the ground, what restraint are you talking about?” she said.
Danny Bahat, the father of another victim, said, “Entire families were wiped out in this attack. This is unprecedented. A special punishment must be given for this.”
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