The Jerusalem District Court sentenced Nabil Shaabani, a 62-year-old Jerusalem resident, to 22 and a half years in prison after he pleaded guilty to and was convicted of an act of terror involving attempted murder motivated by nationalist-ideological motives, as well as theft from a woman in her 70s.
The victim had known Shaabani for many years through maintenance and cleaning work he had performed at her home. As part of his guilty plea, Shaabani admitted that he strangled the elderly woman on two separate occasions, stabbed her in the chest and neck, and took jewelry and money from her home.
According to the amended indictment to which Shaabani pleaded guilty, he had grown disgusted with his life due to financial difficulties and estrangement from his family. After watching media reports about the situation in Gaza during the Swords of Iron War, he decided to seek his own death by carrying out a stabbing attack against Jews for nationalist reasons. His original plan was to carry out the attack near the light rail station adjacent to Jerusalem City Hall, due to the increased presence of security forces there.
However, when he arrived at the elderly woman's home to complete repair work he had begun the previous day, he decided to carry out the attack by murdering her, even if it did not result in his own death.
Shaabani strangled the woman for several minutes, stole property and cash, and fled the scene believing she had died. When he realized he had left his walking stick in the apartment, he returned, saw that she was still alive, strangled her again, and stabbed her in the neck and chest to ensure her death. The woman was seriously injured as a result.
Representatives of the Jerusalem District Attorney's Office sought a sentence of 22 to 26 years in prison, along with maximum financial compensation, emphasizing his abuse of trust and their prior acquaintance, the brutality of the attack and his repeated attempts to take her life, as well as the nationalist motive and the deep physical and psychological harm caused to the victim.
The panel of judges noted that through his actions, Shaabani harmed "not only the complainant, but also the fragile fabric of life that exists between Arabs and Jews in Jerusalem."
The judges emphasized the particular severity of choosing to attack a Jew at his place of work while exploiting a personal acquaintance, as well as the determination and brutality that characterized the incident.
The court further ruled that "the proliferation in recent years of murderous incidents of this kind aimed at killing Jews simply because they are Jews, including the events of October 7, 2023, requires the imposition of severe and deterrent punishment."
The verdict noted that although Shaabani admitted to the charges immediately after his arrest and cooperated during the investigation, he expressed no remorse for his actions in his final statement to the court.
Ultimately, the District Court sentenced Shaabani to 22.5 years in prison, to be calculated from the date of his arrest, six months of suspended imprisonment, and compensation of NIS 150,000 to the victim.