- Moshe Ya'ish al-Nahari
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Moshe Ya'ish al-Nahari (1978 - December 11, 2008) was a Jewish Hebrew language teacher in Raydah, Yemen, who was killed by Abdul Aziz Yahya Al-Abdi, a Muslim Yemenite who accosted him near his home demanding that he convert to Islam. Al-Nahari's attacker subsequently boasted of the killing and the prosecution demanded the death penalty. The court ruled that the attacker was mentally unstable and ordered him to pay damages. In the subsequent appeals case, however, al-Abdi was sentenced to death. The murder of al-Nahari was the first of its kind in at least fifteen years.[1]
Contents
Life
Moshe Ya'ish al-Nahari, a 30 year old father of nine, lived in the small Jewish community of Raydah, Amran province in northern Yemen. He worked as Hebrew teacher at the local Jewish school and as a butcher. He was married to Loza Solaiman.[2] His brother is Rabbi Yahya Ya'ish, one of the leaders of Yemen's Jewish community. al-Nahari had visited Israel a few times and had previously lived in Oshiyot neighborhood in Rechovot.[3] A few years ago he had decided to make aliyah and had sold his house to fund the move. At the last moment his father convinced him to stay in Yemen. He had ties to the Satmar Hasidic movement in Yemen.[4]
Background
The Jewish community in Raydah numbers 266.[2] They had complained about threats received from groups of Islamic extremists previously and they subsequently asked for the protection of the Yemeni government. However, security authorities in the past refused to recognize the claims of the Jewish minority, saying there was no evidence of threats against the defendants.[5]
Attack
On December 11, 2008, Abdul Aziz Yahya Al-Abdi, 39, accosted al-Nahari in the market near his home demanding that he convert to Islam.[5] He called out "Jew, accept the message of Islam".[4] al-Nahari asked to be left alone but Abdi opened fire with a submachine gun until he was riddled with bullets.[6] His relatives and associates tried to pressure the authorities to allow the body to be brought to Israel for burial, but approval was not granted.[3]
Court case
Defence
The suspect, Abdul Aziz Yahya Al-Abdi, a former pilot in the Yemeni Air Force, claimed he was a representative of the Mujahideen in Yemen and the Horn of Africa.[5] He initially refused his Yemeni lawyers who had volunteered to defend him, saying he wanted only an American lawyer.[2] al-Abdi admitted in court that he killed al-Nahari "to get closer to Allah" saying that he had warned the Jews months ago either convert to Islam or leave the country.[2]
Attempting to avoid the death penalty, Khalid al-Shalali, defending Al-Abdi, told the court that his client was mentally unfit and suffering from schizophrenia when the murder was committed. Al-Abdi's medical report was presented, noting that he had killed his wife five years earlier.[5] While his lawyer was reading the report about his psychotic problems and recommended putting al-Abdi in a psychotic sanitarium, Al-Abdi exclaimed "Executing me is better than putting me in a sanitarium, I'm very well." He then turned to the victims father and wife saying "I killed him while I was very well, they deceive you." The lawyers also presented to the court a document signed by 40 men from the tribe of al-Abdi witnessing that he was suffering psychotic problems.[2]
Prosecution
The lawyer representing the al-Nahari family, Yahya Allaw, cast doubt on the report, saying it failed to state which doctors had issued the report, or their specialization. He added that the report failed to specify the exact physiological state of the suspect when he committed the crime.[5] These claims were seconded by the National Organization for Defending Rights and Freedoms, who represented Al-Nahari in court pro bono.[1] The court accepted the demands of the victim’s lawyer, and decided to refer the medical report to a medical committee for clarification on the suspect’s psychological state.[5]
Verdict
The verdict was passed on March 2, 2009. The small courtroom was packed with several dozen other members of Abdi’s Kharef tribe and the only Jewish people present were the victim’s father and widow — also the only woman in the courtroom.[6] As the court session got underway on Monday, the authorities sealed off the court building for fear of a violent backlash.[7] Throughout the case, relatives of the deceased were verbally attacked and insulted by the defendant’s tribe.[1] al-Abdi showed no remorse for his actions. The court ruled that a payment of 5.5 million YR ($27,500) damages be made and that the convict should be placed in a psychotic sanatorium.[2] When the verdict was read out, the dozen people present inside the small courtroom expressed relief, except for the victim's relatives. Police hurried to empty the courtroom as soon as the trial was adjourned and prevented journalists from speaking to people present.[7]
Appeal and death sentence
The family of the victim decided to appeal the verdict to demand that the death penalty be implemented against the convicted. The prosecuting lawyer, Khaled al-Ansi, said, ”The verdict is a big scandal” and “The trial was not fair, and was not secure, the Judge was afraid. The verdict will lead to the emigration of the remaining Jews from Yemen.” The rabbi of the Jewish community in Amran, Yahya Yaeish, said “The verdict will encourage more killings of Jews.”[2]
On June 21, 2009, the appeals court sentenced al-Abdi to death. His lawyers responded that they would take the case to the country's Supreme Court.[8]
In April 2011, it was reported tht al-Abdi bribed prison guards and had escaped from prison.[9]
Reactions
In response to the court case, the Jewish community expressed their ordeal and how unsafe they felt after extremists have been sending them hate letters and threats by phone.[1] The killing heightened the distress amongst the Jewish community in Raydah and their complaints eventually reached the President of the Republic. They demanded to be relocated to the capital Sana’a and to be compensated for their houses and property in Raydah. Their demands were met by President Saleh, who ordered properties to be provided for them in Sana’a.[5]
Amnesty International wrote to the Yemeni Government urging the country to protect its Jews. The human rights organization stated that it is "deeply concerned for the safety of members of the Jewish community in northwestern Yemen following the killing of one member of the community and anonymous serious threats to others to leave Yemen or face death."[10]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d al-Thaibani, Kawkab. Last session before Jewish murder verdict, Yemen Times, 11-02-2009. Retrieved on 2009-03-08.
- ^ a b c d e f g Arrabyee, Nasser. Blood money for Killing Yemeni Jew, Yemen Observer, 03-03-2009. Retrieved on 2009-03-08.
- ^ a b Stern, Yoav. Jews of Yemen reportedly to be relocated in wake of deadly attack, Haartez, 18-12-2008. Retrieved on 2009-03-08.
- ^ a b Jew shot to death in Yemen by 'disturbed extremist', Ynet, 12-12-2008. Retrieved on 2009-03-08.
- ^ a b c d e f g al-Kibsi, Mohammed.Verdict in murder of Jewish citizen due March 2, Yemen Observer, 17-02-2009. Retrieved on 2009-03-08.
- ^ a b Prosecution seeks death for Yemeni Jew’s murder, Arab News, 17-02-2009. Retrieved on 2009-03-08.
- ^ a b Yemeni Jew killer ordered to pay blood money, al-Watan Daily, 08-03-2009. Retrieved on 2009-03-08.
- ^ Sudam, Mohamed (2009-06-21). "Yemeni who killed Jew gets death sentence". Reuters. http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE55K0T420090621. Retrieved June 22, 2009.
- ^ [http://www.ynet.co.il/english/articles/0,7340,L-4057403,00.html
- ^ Amnesty Int’l urges Yemen to protect its Jew, JTA, 24-12-2008.
External links
Categories:- Yemenite Orthodox Jews
- People murdered in Yemen
- Islam and antisemitism
- Deaths by firearm in Yemen
- 1978 births
- 2008 deaths
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