Rina Shnerb Hy"d
Rina Shnerb Hy"dFamily

Ofer Military Court Vice President Lt. Col. Rani Amar today sentenced Issar Hatem Rashid Maruf to 16 months imprisonment, 12 months probation, and a fine of only NIS 6,000.

Maruf was convicted, as part of a plea bargain, of failing to prevent the attack in which Rina Shnerb was murdered at the Ein Dani spring near Dolev, and her father, Rabbi Eitan Shnerb, and brother Dvir were wounded.

The judge upheld the plea bargain, noting that "there is no disagreement that the facts of the indictment to which the defendant admitted indicate that a number of 'warning signs' were placed before him as to the chances of a fatal attack occurring."

"However, other circumstances related to the commission of the offense must not be attributed to him. The defendant was not exposed to the detailed planning of the specifics of the attack or to the means used to carry it out," the judge added.

Advocate Maurice Hirsch, representing the family members of Rina Shnerb, noted that the salary that Maruf received and continues to receive from the Palestinian Authority is higher than originally believed, as exposed in data revealed at the hearing.

Each month he is paid a salary of at least NIS 2,000 and upon his release he will receive a grant of $2,000, so that in total he will receive from the Palestinian Authority a cumulative amount of almost NIS 40,000, compared to his fine of only NIS 6,000.

Shira Shnerb, mother of Rina, told Arutz Sheva at the opening of the hearing: “We're here because of the defendant who knew of an intent to murder and didn't do what every person should do, which is to update and inform. It could be that if he had done that, we wouldn't have been here."

Shira recounted the timing of the hearing, "Today is exactly 11 months from the attack. We're here with Tiferet who didn't get to know her sister. It's clear to us that everyone who is an accomplice in the murder should be punished. It's not only we who are clear about his involvement in the murder, the Palestinian Authority also knows it very well, which is why they're paying him for it. If they understand that, it's time we understood it, too."

To read the verdict in the original Hebrew, click here.