Anat Kam at start of trial: I hope it will be okay
Kam, who leaked thousands of classified military documents to journalist during her military service, is accused of possession of classified material and passing it on with intention of harming State security – offenses punishable by life in prison
The espionage case moves to the next stage. The trial of Anat Kam, accused espionage, started behind closed doors Monday at Tel Aviv District Court. Upon arriving at the courthouse after five months in house arrest, Kam said to journalists, "Today I left the house, so I already feel good. I hope everything will be okay."
The judges decided that portions of the trial will be open to the public.
With the start of the hearing, the State Prosecution asked that the case be heard behind closed doors, while Kam's legal counsel opposed the request. Ultimately, the judges decided that Monday's hearing will be conducted behind closed doors and a gag order will be imposed on its content.
Kam at the start of the trial. 'Possession of classified material' (Photo: Ofer Amram)
Publication of the proceedings may be made possible retroactively if found to be appropriate.
Regarding upcoming sittings of the court, the judges decided that the defense and the prosecution will notify the court of their positions regarding each and every witness that will take the stand. The court will then decide on each case separately whether it will be heard behind closed doors or in an open format. As such, publication of the case will be based on the content of the testimonies given in each hearing.
Kam's lawyer, Attorney Avigdor Feldman, said in a surprise move at the end of the hearing that he will ask to appeal his client's testimony. "They assured us that if she passes on all the material in her possession that no trial would be opened against her. Therefore, she was not arrested for even one day. This promise was violated a few months later.
"Anat, in essence, was duped into providing a full testimony, and ultimately is being put on trial. This is something that will not be done," added Feldman, who emphasized that he has yet to receive the investigation material. "There apparently are new agreements with Uri Blau, who apparently returned the material."
The prosecution declined comment to his statements.
Anat's mother, Adah, said following the hearing, "Anat has definitely internalized what has happened. She is already at home for a half a year, not working, not studying. Her entire lifestyle has changed."
In response to the question what Anat's mistake was, her mother said, "Her big mistake was that she put faith in someone she shouldn’t have put her faith in."
Attorney Tali Lieblich, who is representing Haaretz reported Uri Blau, said, "Uri Blau returned to the authorities all the material he received from Anat Kam. Beyond this, no new agreement was signed with him. Negotiations with him are sluggish, and nothing more."
Maximum sentence: Life in prison
Kam is charged with stealing thousands of classified documents from the office of the Central Command chief, where she served as a clerk during her military service, and passing them on to Haaretz journalist Uri Blau, who based a number of articles on the top-secret information, including an article on the authorization of extrajudicial killings in opposition to High Court directives. Following this said article, an investigation of the affair was launched.The offenses listed in the indictment against Kam are possession and transference of classified information with the intention to damage State security, which hold the penalty of life in prison.
Under investigation by the Shin Bet, Kam confessed to stealing the documents and passing them on. However, it still remains unclear if she will confess to espionage. During her investigation, she claimed that she had no intention of harming State security, and therefore only made contact with Israeli journalists under the assumption that the military censor will prevent the publication of any detail likely to endanger the State or its soldiers.
Blau's articles did indeed receive authorization from the military censor.
Kam told her investigators that she was ideologically motivated. "It was important for me to bring the IDF's policies in the territories to public knowledge," she said then, adding, "In the test of history, those who warned against war crimes have been forgiven."
Kam, who waived her immunity as a journalistic source, was released on bail to house arrest more than five months ago. Recently, the court refused to grant her furlough, which she requested on "humanitarian grounds."
Haaretz journalist Blau has yet to return to Israel from London, his location since the beginning of the affair's investigation. He is wanted by the Shin Bet for investigation, even though he already handed over to the State Prosecution the documents he received from Kam.
Negotiations are still underway between him and the defense authorities, who are demanding that he return all the classified documents in his possession. Blau has thus far declined to heed their request.
During court hearings, it became clear that one of the discs burned by Kam in the Central Command chief's office has disappeared, and no one claims to know where it is.
