A New Zealand man has been sentenced to two years and four months in prison for assaulting an Israeli tourist in Christchurch last year, in an unusually severe punishment for a street attack.
The conviction, announced this week by New Zealand’s Justice Ministry, came after months of diplomatic and police coordination that began when the victim, 29-year-old Yuval Shekel, filed a complaint the day after the incident. Shekel had been traveling in New Zealand with his girlfriend following more than 200 days of reserve duty in Gaza and Lebanon.
According to Shekel, the assault occurred in a Christchurch bar after a local man asked where he was from. “I said I was from Israel and felt something strange in the air,” he recalls. The man then asked whether he had served in the army — a common question for travelers abroad — and, seconds later, punched him in the face.
Bystanders restrained the attacker, who shouted antisemitic slurs, including that Shekel was a “baby killer,” before fleeing the scene. Police did not arrive before he left.
The blow shattered three of Shekel’s teeth, requiring hospital treatment and months of dental reconstruction. “It was a nightmare of a week,” he said. “I’ve been in recovery for three months, and my teeth still haven’t fully healed. And the humiliation stays.”
After Shekel filed a police report, his father contacted the Israeli Embassy in Wellington. Embassy officials, who said they were shocked by the case, alerted the Israel Police attaché in Asia visiting New Zealand at the time and pressed local authorities to pursue the suspect. New Zealand police later took Shekel’s full testimony and opened a criminal investigation.
The attacker was arrested and charged under an expedited legal proceeding. Prosecutors sought a seven-year sentence, but the court handed down a term of two years and four months — still considered severe for a first-time assault conviction.
Shekel said he felt justice had been done. “You can’t give up when Israelis are attacked abroad,” he said. “The embassy and the Israel Police really can help. It’s hard not to feel ashamed that we’re Israelis sometimes, but we have to remember there are people who hate us.”
His father said the case should reassure Israeli travelers that they are not without recourse. “Every Israeli tourist should know their blood is not cheap,” he said. “If people realize they can file complaints and involve the local embassy, it will deter attackers. They’ll know there are consequences.”