"The mountain brought forth a little mouse - and one with a limp, at that." So said Atty. Naftali Wurtzberger this morning, in response to the charges filed today against his clients Yitzchak Pass and Mati Shvo. The two, who were arrested over three weeks ago and were not allowed to meet with their lawyer or family members for over two weeks, have been charged with transporting explosives.
Supreme Court Justice Dalia Dorner ruled a few days after their arrest that she had received secret information from the GSS, which persuaded her that their harsh incarceration conditions were justified. Dorner said at the time that they were suspected of membership in a terrorist organization.
Atty. Wurtzberger said today that eight bricks of explosives were apparently stolen from an IDF base and placed in Pass' car with the intention of framing him - but that in any event, the charges are a far cry from what had originally been alleged.
The charges state that on July 17, Pass and Shvo were caught at the Hizme checkpoint in northern Jerusalem with the four kilograms of explosives. They are accused of having accepted stolen goods and illegal possession of weapons - but not of conspiracy to commit a terror attack against Arabs or the like. The GSS and police requested that the two, who are brothers-in-law, be held until the end of the legal proceedings, as they are "a danger to the public." The Court ruled, however, that they, together with a third person, be held until next Friday, at which time another hearing would be held. They have been held in isolation until now, but it is likely that their conditions will now improve.
Atty. Wurtzberger said,
"All the talk of a terrorist organization and the like has been reduced to some bricks - certainly nothing to justify the storm that surrounded this case. With hundreds of Arab terrorists being released, indicting these two is very disturbing... Israelis serve in the army, and every once in a while the army holds special amnesty campaigns for people to return explosives and other army items they may have in their possession. Possession of explosives may technically be a violation of the law, but it is certainly a far cry from what the authorities tried to pin on them."
Supreme Court Justice Dalia Dorner ruled a few days after their arrest that she had received secret information from the GSS, which persuaded her that their harsh incarceration conditions were justified. Dorner said at the time that they were suspected of membership in a terrorist organization.
Atty. Wurtzberger said today that eight bricks of explosives were apparently stolen from an IDF base and placed in Pass' car with the intention of framing him - but that in any event, the charges are a far cry from what had originally been alleged.
The charges state that on July 17, Pass and Shvo were caught at the Hizme checkpoint in northern Jerusalem with the four kilograms of explosives. They are accused of having accepted stolen goods and illegal possession of weapons - but not of conspiracy to commit a terror attack against Arabs or the like. The GSS and police requested that the two, who are brothers-in-law, be held until the end of the legal proceedings, as they are "a danger to the public." The Court ruled, however, that they, together with a third person, be held until next Friday, at which time another hearing would be held. They have been held in isolation until now, but it is likely that their conditions will now improve.
Atty. Wurtzberger said,
"All the talk of a terrorist organization and the like has been reduced to some bricks - certainly nothing to justify the storm that surrounded this case. With hundreds of Arab terrorists being released, indicting these two is very disturbing... Israelis serve in the army, and every once in a while the army holds special amnesty campaigns for people to return explosives and other army items they may have in their possession. Possession of explosives may technically be a violation of the law, but it is certainly a far cry from what the authorities tried to pin on them."