The Bat Ayin trio, having been recently found guilty of attempted murder of Arabs, was sentenced to heavy prison terms today. The Jerusalem District Court sentenced Ofer Gamliel and Shlomo Dvir to 15 years in prison, and Yarden Morag - who expressed remorse and was not involved in planning the attack - to 12 years.
The three admitted that they had set up a "wagon bomb" at the entrance to an Arab school in eastern Jerusalem in May 2002 - but claimed that they never meant for it to explode. As proof, they cited the fact that the battery to which the explosives were connected was empty - but the prosecution said that this was merely an oversight on their part. The prisoners' families expressed shock at the heavy sentences, and their attorney Naftali Wurtzberger said they would appeal.
The three admitted that they had set up a "wagon bomb" at the entrance to an Arab school in eastern Jerusalem in May 2002 - but claimed that they never meant for it to explode. As proof, they cited the fact that the battery to which the explosives were connected was empty - but the prosecution said that this was merely an oversight on their part. The prisoners' families expressed shock at the heavy sentences, and their attorney Naftali Wurtzberger said they would appeal.