Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan has sharply criticized the decision of the Yehuda region military court to sentence Effi Shalabi, the terrorist who aided Muntasser Shalabi in murdering Yehuda GuettaHy”d and severely wounding Benaya Peretz, to just ten months behind bars.
Guetta was 19 years old when he was murdered at the Tapuah junction in March, 2021.
“This decision, to grant a lenient sentence to a terrorist who knowingly aided in committing murder effectively grants a license to murder to the next terrorist, and shows a reckless lack of concern for Jewish lives. How is the family of Yehuda Guetta supposed to deal with the knowledge that the State of Israel places no value on the life of their son and brother, sentencing someone who knowingly aided in his murder to just ten months in prison? What kind of deterrence does that provide?”
While in prison, Shalabi was elected as mayor of Turmus Aya, a village near Ramallah, at least in part due to being viewed as someone “to whom Palestine is so important,” as Arab social media posts revealed.
“And as if all that wasn’t enough,” commented Dagan, “this terrorist knows that a leadership position is waiting for him when he comes out of prison. It’s quite obvious that aiding in a murderous terrorist attack actually boosted his chances of being elected mayor. This is utter lunacy, and the damage it does to deterrence is liable to exact a price in blood in the future. The judges should have taken this into account when making such a ruling concerning someone who is the enemy of our people,” Dagan concluded.