Guests in 'wedding of hate' face charges of incitement, possession of firearms
Groom Yakir Ashbal and right-wing activist Daniel Pinner among 13 indicted after dancing with firearms and mocking the murder of Palestinian baby Ali Dawabsheh.
Among the defendants are five minors aged 14-17, as well as groom Yakir Ashbal from Yad Binyamin. Another defendant is the wedding singer, Sinai Tor from Ramat HaSharon, who sang a song about building the Third Temple, adding lyrics like "The mosque will burn, burn" and "The mosque will explode, explode" and is accused of inciting and spurring the guests on with his songs.
According to the indictment, right-wing activist Daniel Tzvi Moshe Pinner from Kfar Tapuach danced at the wedding with a rifle, while wearing a shirt of Rabbi Meir Kahane's Kach party that says "No Arabs, no terror attacks." Pinner is also facing charges of incitement to racism and support of a terror organization.
Videos from the Jerusalem wedding of Yakir and Ronny Ashbal in December 2015 also show guests dancing while brandishing IDF-issued M4 and M16 automatic rifles, guns, knives and bottles made to look like Molotov cocktails to the song "And let me take one vengeance for my two eyes on the Philistines" (changed to "Palestinians"). Some of the guests were dancing with their faces covered, while several of the guests brandishing weapons cocked them.
Participants also stabbed, tore, and set fire to photos of Ali Dawabsheh, an 18-month-old baby who was murdered in an arson attack on their home in the village of Duma, and of his two parents, who were also murdered in the attack. The photos had the word "Revenge" written on them.
Two Jewish suspects—Amiram Ben-Uliel, 21, from Jerusalem, and a 17-year-old youth from the Samaria region—were indicted for the murder and involvement in the murder of the Dawabsheh family.
According to the indictment, "with their actions, defendants jointly called for an act of violence or terrorism; praise, sympathy or encouragement of an act of violence or terrorism; and support or identification with such an act. Based on the contents of the inciting actions and the circumstances in which they occurred, there is a real possibility that it will lead an act of violence and terrorism."
The Israel Police's Judea and Samaria District's Nationalistic Crimes Unit launched an investigation into the wedding following the publication of the videos, arresting and questioning several suspects. Among the suspects questioned were Ashbal himself and other right-wing activists, some of them minors. All suspects were released after a few days.
Attorney Itamar Ben Gvir, who is representing Daniel Pinner and was a guest at the wedding himself, said in response to the indictments: "This is a populist move by the State Attorney's Office. I propose that before the State Attorney's Office files an indictment concerning this wedding, they file incitements against guests at weddings in Umm al-Fahm, who actually fire their weapons and not just dance with them."
