Israeli court orders Hamas to pay $11.8 million to families of three slain teens; families to appeal
The Jerusalem District Court ruled on Monday that Hamas must pay 38 million shekels (US$11.8 million) to the families of three Israeli teens murdered by the terrorist group in 2014.
Eyal Yifrach (19), Gilad Shaer (16) and Naftali Frenkel (16), who were abducted and murdered by Hamas terrorists on June 12, 2014. Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Justice Ilan Sela noted in the ruling that the figure was based on a previous Supreme Court ruling. Each estate is to be awarded 3 million shekels (around $935,000) in compensation and each claimant 1 million shekels ($311,660).
Shurat Hadin further argued the court’s ruling disparages the victims and makes a mockery of the war on terror: “No $10 million ruling will deter an organization with a billion-dollar budget. The purpose of the lawsuits is to topple the terrorism, and this cannot be done through amounts that are insignificant to them [the Hamas terrorists].”
Noting that U.S. courts have ordered terror victims to be paid hundreds of millions of dollars in compensation, the organization said there was nothing stopping Israeli courts from doing the same.
In a statement, Shurat Hadin founder Nitsana Darshan-Leitner said: “It cannot be that the Israeli court will spare the terrorist organization that funded, planned, and carried out the terrible attack that was etched on the entire nation’s heart. The ruling allotting a tenth of the compensation claim will severely damage Israeli deterrence and the means to eradicate terrorism via economic means. I believe that the … punitive damages for victims of terrorism should be anchored in law for victims to receive the amount they deserve and thereby force the terrorist organizations to think twice before paying for their actions.”
(Israel Hayom via JNS) Reporter: Yair Altman
This article first appeared in Israel Hayom.
