Terrorism victim speaks out against 'lenient' sentence for attacker
Mendi Rivkin, who was stabbed earlier this year at a gas station in Pisgat Ze'ev by a 17-year-old terrorist, objects to the 15 year jail sentence handed to his attacker; 'we call for a harder stance in punishing terrorists and particularly in this case, as we witness a nationwide wave of terror,' says Rivkin's legal representative in his appeal to the IDF Court.
“I don’t care whether he is a minor or not. I know that he tried to kill me, and as far as I am concerned he should sit in prison for his entire life or at least serve the maximum sentence,” said the victim, Mendi Rivkin, 50, in reference to a plea bargain reached between the military prosecution and the Palestinian, who was 17 years old at the time of the stabbing.
The terrorist, will be sent to jail for 15 years and will also be required to pay Rivkin NIS 20,000 in compensation.
The attack took place in January 2016 when the terrorist opened the door to one of the restaurants at a gas station near the Giv'onim Junction on Route 436 and stabbed Rivkin twice in his upper body as he was standing there before fleeing the scene. The terrorist was then pursued by a group of civilians who witnessed the attack and apprehended.
“My wife and I still suffer from the attack, and our children still suffer from shock,” Rivkin, a father of five, said. “At a time when Jews are frightened to walk down the street, it is unfathomable that a terrorist is released after a few years.”
According to Rivkin, there is another reason that his specific attacker should be handed a harsher sentence. “The terrorist is the son of one of the Hamas terrorists whose father was deported to Lebanon in Rabin’s time. This isn’t someone who did it because of things on Facebook and he didn’t operate alone,” he explained. “He continued in the same path as his father and grandfather. If you want to deter others you have to mete out the harshest punishment. The state needs to take responsibility and not let the terrorists off.”
Over the past few months, more severe verdicts have been handed down to underage terrorists. Among them was a 16-year-old girl who carried out a stabbing attack at the Jerusalem light rail in November 2015 and sentenced to 18 years, and a 17-year-old boy who carried out a stabbing attack at IDF Square in Jerusalem, and who was stopped by Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, who was also sentenced 18 years.
Several of these cases were later settled through plea bargains with less jail time for the convicted, underage terrorists. In the case of the light rail stabber, for example, it was agreed that she would only serve 6.5 years out of the 18 she was originally sentenced to serve.
Earlier this week, attorney Hor Nizri, acting as Rivkin's legal council, petitioned the IDF Court to maintain a line of more severe sentences even for underage terrorists. "In the name of my client, we call for a harder stance in punishing terrorists and particularly in this case, as we witness a nationwide wave of terror," said Nizri.
He continued by stating, "The appropriate punishment is one that will deter and prevent future acts of terror, as time and time again we see terrorists who have been released from prison return to murdering innocent and helpless Jews, due to the cruelest, most violent and most dangerous brand of hatred that exists on earth."
