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MK Ofer Cassif Convicted of Assaulting Police Officer
The Jerusalem Magistrate's Court convicted Member of Knesset Ofer Cassif on Thursday of aggravated assault against a police officer. The conviction stems from an incident in May 2022 during a protest in Masafer Yatta in the southern Hebron Hills.
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What happened
- 01The Jerusalem Magistrate's Court convicted MK Ofer Cassif on Thursday of aggravated assault against a police officer.
- 02The incident occurred on May 13, 2022, during a protest in Masafer Yatta in the southern Hebron Hills.
- 03The court found that Cassif intentionally hit Officer Yitzhak Azulai's leg with his car and struck him on the head.
- 04Security forces had blocked Cassif's vehicle because the area was declared a closed military zone.
- 05The court rejected Cassif's claims of self-defense, accidental contact, and parliamentary immunity.
- 06Cassif and his political bloc, the Joint List, condemned the verdict as political persecution and announced plans to appeal.
According to the indictment, security forces had declared the area a closed military zone and blocked Cassif from driving his vehicle toward the protest. Following a heated argument, Cassif drove his car forward, hitting the leg of Officer Yitzhak Azulai, and then exited the vehicle to strike the officer on the head.
Cassif argued that the vehicle contact was accidental, that he acted in self-defense, and that his parliamentary immunity protected his movement. The court rejected these arguments, citing video evidence and witness testimonies, and ruled that his immunity did not permit him to endanger individuals or obstruct the police.
Following the verdict, Cassif and his political bloc, the Joint List, condemned the decision as political persecution. Cassif stated outside the courtroom that the trial was part of a campaign against those who oppose Israeli policy in Judea and Samaria.
Summarized by baba from the reports of 14 newsrooms. Updated
Latest report: Israel National News. Read Israel National News’s original
The coverage
20 newsrooms on this story
Who covered it
- Left2
- Centre7+2
- Right6+1
- Haredi3
- Arab2
