Deputy prosecutor fears rightist attacks
Law enforcement source says Shai Nitzan's family living in fear of retaliation for rabbi's arrest
Deputy State Prosecutor Shai Nitzan, who is responsible for cases of freedom of speech violations at the State Prosecutor's Office, is said to be fearing for his life as rightists continue to threaten him and his family over the arrest of Rabbi Dov Lior for incitement.
"These right-wing activists will not rest until they physically hurt Nitzan or his family," a law enforcement source told Ynet Tuesday. "I guess their aim is to deter public officials from dealing in law enforcement."
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He also rejected claims of discrimination against rightists, citing investigations against left-wing activist Gideon Spiro for an online article on shooting settlers as well as a number of Arab leaders who "call for death to Jews".
"If Dov Lior was an imam he'd have been locked up a week ago," the source said.
"Nitzan's wife and kids are at home while he protects us, the State of Israel, at an international forum. How low can this go?"
He added that for the most part, activists choose to attack public officials with a religious background, in order to put them to shame when they attend prayer services over the weekend.
"Right-wing activists are familiar with this so they make sure to attack them and their families. The result is that religious people don't want to work in law enforcement. Is this what we want?" the source said.
Lador: Nitzan has no agenda
He also stressed that Nitzan is not the final decision-maker on arrests, but that they go through the prosecutor and the attorney general as well. "He's just an easy target. It's easier to run media campaigns against a specific person you can focus on," he said.
State Prosecutor Moshe Lador responded to the threats against Nitzan by telling reporters "he does not set policy, and has no agenda of his own".
Lador also reiterated sentiment expressed by numerous state officials, who reminded the public Tuesday that no one is above the law. "If the system decided Lior must be questioned, then he must be questioned," he said.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also reacted Tuesday to Lior's arrest, after suffering criticism for his lack of response. "Israel is a law-abiding state. It is binding and includes everyone. I call on all citizens to maintain the law," he said in a statement.
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