Terrorist Islam Naji, who murdered Israeli soldier Ronen Lubarsky during an arrest raid near Ramallah in May, has been sentenced to life in prison for premeditated murder.
Lubarsky, a 20-year-old soldier with the elite Duvdevan counterterrorism unit, sustained mortal injuries when a marble slab was dropped on his head during an arrest raid of terror suspects in the al-Amari refugee camp.
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He was rushed to Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Jerusalem where doctors fought to save his life, but to no avail.
Lubarsky's family had called for the death penalty, but the prosecution did not raise this option in court. The military court handed down the maximum punishment applicable by law: life in prison, which under Israeli law is 30 years, plus eight months for disrupting court proceedings. In addition, the court ordered Naji to pay the Lubarsky family 285,000 shekels (around $80,600) in damages.
In December, security forces demolished Naji's family's four-story home.
Vladmir Lubarsky, Ronen's father, said, "The time has come for the military prosecution to stop being afraid and demand the death sentence for the vile terrorist. We demand nothing less. In the war on terror, only a firm hand will save lives."
Calling Naji's sentence an "unprecedented disgrace," he said, "It is a serious mistake by the State of Israel to grant our avowed enemies the right to be tried instead of taking them out. Negotiating with them in prisons instead of deporting their families is absurd. It is only the implementation of a package of deterrence against terrorism without hesitation will prevent the next murder."
Matan Peleg of the right-wing organization Im Tirzu said Lubarasky's murder "proved just how necessary is a serious package of deterrence that includes the deportation of terrorists' families, the death sentence, and an end to the festivities in prison. We call on the next Israeli government to do everything to continue to fight terrorism."
