Jail
Jailצילום: iStock

Dalal Da'ud, an Israeli woman who killed her abusive husband in 1997 and was sentenced to life in prison in 2002, walked out of Ramle prison to freedom on Thursday morning.

"I'm very excited. I want to thank everyone - all those who supported me and helped me to start a new life,” Da’ud told reporters. “I missed my family and my children. I want to see my children more than anything else.”

"We thought this would happen a long time ago but unfortunately it was delayed over and over," said Revital Ben Shabat, Da’ud’s lawyer. "Dalal is ready for her new life. She will be assisted by therapists from the Prisoner Rehabilitation Authority, who will aid her in finding employment," she said. “She will be reintegrated into society over time.”

Former president Moshe Katsav commuted Da’ud's sentence to 25 years and President Rivlin, whose late wife Nechama, had visited Da'ud in prison, arranged for her to appeal to the parole board for an early release. The prison parole board approved her early release on Wednesday based on her completion of a rehabilitation program in prison.


Da'ud suffered horrific abuse at the hands of her husband during their marriage, the details of which were unknown to the court when she was convicted. Her husband continuously beat her, raped her, and locked her in chains when he left the house. Da'ud had filed a total of 26 complaints to the police against her husband to no avail - no action was taken against her husband. She also was hospitalized several times due to injuries incurred from his beatings as well as due to an attempt at suicide.

In 1997, Da'ud's husband beat her only a few days after she gave birth, also threatening to rape her in front of their children. Da'ud gave him sleeping pills to calm him down and covered him with blankets after he fell asleep. During the night, he suffocated to death. Da'ud, in her early 20s at the time, was later arrested and convicted of his murder.