Sofian Abado, an Israeli-Arab employed as a chef in Rimon Cafe in Jerusalem, was sentenced to ten years in prison today for his plot to poison the food he prepared. His two accomplices in the plot that was discovered in September 2002 were sentenced to 7.5 and 5 years, respectively. Two of the convicts were also accused of scheming to manufacture Kassam rockets in Jerusalem. The relatively light sentences were the result of a plea-bargain agreement.
The Chief Justice of the Moslems' religious court system in the Palestinian Authority is under Israeli arrest. Sheikh Tisir Tamimi will be brought before a judge today for the extension of his remand. He is accused of grave incitement against Israel during his weekly sermons in Hevron, as well as during speeches on the Temple Mount.
Palestinian terror attacks and other attempted murders since last night include two more mortar shells at the community of Netzer Hazani, a bomb thrown at soldiers in Shechem, rocks hurled at Israeli cars near Hevron, gunfire at soldiers near Tul Karem, full-scale attacks against IDF forces on the Israeli-Egyptian border, four firebombs and gunfire at soldiers in the Shomron near Otzrin, and more. Remarkably, no one was hurt in these incidents. IDF troops arrested seven suspected terrorists last night in Ramallah, and another eight in a neighborhood of Shechem.