SANA'A // A former military pilot who shot dead a Jewish teacher last December was sentenced to death by an appeals court yesterday.
While the verdict was welcomed by the family of the victim, relatives and tribesmen of the convict were irate, and described the verdict as "shameful".
"We consider the verdict a triumph for Islam, [a religion] that treats people equally and a correction for the primary court scandal," said Khalid al Anisi, who represented the family of Moshe Yaish al Nahari, who was killed last December.
The prosecution had demanded the death sentence for Abdulaziz Yahia al Abdi, 39, who confessed to killing al Nahari, a Hebrew teacher and father of nine, following a warning by al Abdi that Jews should convert to Islam or leave the area.
The appeals court judge, Ahmed al Badani, and his two assistant judges, Mohammed al Jindari and Abdulmalik Sharafeddin, overturned the primary court verdict, which ordered last March that al Abdi pay the victim's family US$27,500 (Dh100,925) in blood money.
Al Abdi originally escaped the death sentence after the primary court judge ruled he was mentally ill.
The appeals court judges said the convicted man killed al Nahari in daylight, admitting before the court that he had planned the murder in advance.
Upon hearing the ruling, al Abdi said: "This verdict honours me." The father and wife of the victim were the only members of the Jewish community who attended the ruling session, and his father described the verdict as just.
"This is fair and this is Islamic Sharia [law]. I am happy about this verdict. I know it will not bring back my sole son, but at least it will relieve us that justice has been made," said Yaish al Nahari, father of the victim, as he wept.
Al Abdi's tribal relatives were infuriated by the verdict, which they described as unfair for sentencing a Muslim to death for killing a Jew. Some even said this is against Sharia.
They besieged the court premises and refused to allow the victim's family and the judges to leave.
"This is unfair and shameful as Abdulaziz suffers from psychological problems. The primary court has proved that. We will challenge this verdict," said Sheikh Hamud al Abdi, an elder brother.
The verdict, said Mr al Anisi, will restore confidence in the fairness of the judiciary.
"It is the first court verdict that gives the death penalty for a Muslim [murdering a Jew] since the 1980s.
"Usually tribal dignitaries used to interfere and exercise pressure on the Jewish families of the victims to accept tribal arbitration, ending with blood money.
But this is also the first case in which the killing of a Jew is motivated by extremist religious views," Mr al Anisi said.
Jews in Rydah and Kharif districts in Amran province have complained that they have received death threats and other forms of harassment, including having hand grenades thrown at their houses, particularly after the latest Israeli attack on the Gaza Strip. About 400 Jews live in the town, 60km from Sana'a, the capital.
Mr al Anisi, who volunteered to represent al Nahari's family, expressed concern over a potentially violent backlash from the convicted man's family.
"The relatives of the convict besieged the court building and refused to let the judges and father and wife of the victim to leave. They even threatened them.
"Police escorted them to their house and I went with them to make sure they arrived home peacefully. Another police car escorted the judge," said Mr al Anisi.
"It is the task of the authorities to protect the Jews from any angry reactions. It is this way the authorities can demonstrate respect to the ruling."
However, the family of the victim is making its own arrangements to permanently move to the capital Sana'a in fear of any possible backlash.
"We are very happy about this verdict and we want the execution of the killer, but I am expecting harassment as a result.
"We are making arrangements to leave Amran to Sana'a as we have heard the tribesmen here are going to protest against the ruling," said a relative of the Jewish victim on condition of anonymity for security reasons. Following reports of the threats against the Jews after the murder of al Nahari, Ali Abdullah Saleh, the Yemeni president, discussed with Jewish community leaders a plan to relocate Yemen's remaining 200 to 300 Jews from Amran to Sana'a, where each Jewish family would receive a plot of land, the state-run Saba news agency has reported.
However, some Jews, including the Rabbi Yahia bin Yaish, said there was nothing new or acceptable about this relocation plan.
Others Jews, however, did not wait for further details of the plan and decided to migrate to Israel.
Said bin Yisrael, the head of the Jewish community in Rydah, and his eight children and wife arrived at Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv last February following hate attacks.
Yahia bin Yaish, the rabbi of the Jewish community in Amran, said three families left for Israel yesterday and others are preparing to depart.
"If the situation gets worse, as now it is not as bad as it used to be some months ago, and if people do not feel secure, some families will leave for Israel. Three families have just left today. However, some do not want to leave at all," said Mr Bin Yaish.
Yemen was once home to about 50,000 Jews in the early 1950s, but most migrated to Israel.
They had gained a reputation for intricate silver and gold jewellery and their decorative swords and knives.
malqadhi@thenational.ae
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How much sugar is in chocolate Easter eggs?
- The 169g Crunchie egg has 15.9g of sugar per 25g serving, working out at around 107g of sugar per egg
- The 190g Maltesers Teasers egg contains 58g of sugar per 100g for the egg and 19.6g of sugar in each of the two Teasers bars that come with it
- The 188g Smarties egg has 113g of sugar per egg and 22.8g in the tube of Smarties it contains
- The Milky Bar white chocolate Egg Hunt Pack contains eight eggs at 7.7g of sugar per egg
- The Cadbury Creme Egg contains 26g of sugar per 40g egg
Blonde
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Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Know your camel milk:
Flavour: Similar to goat’s milk, although less pungent. Vaguely sweet with a subtle, salty aftertaste.
Texture: Smooth and creamy, with a slightly thinner consistency than cow’s milk.
Use it: In your morning coffee, to add flavour to homemade ice cream and milk-heavy desserts, smoothies, spiced camel-milk hot chocolate.
Goes well with: chocolate and caramel, saffron, cardamom and cloves. Also works well with honey and dates.
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Three stars
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Newcastle 2-2 Manchester City
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How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
POSSIBLE ENGLAND EURO 2020 SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Dean Henderson.
Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Kieran Trippier, Joe Gomez, John Stones, Harry Maguire, Tyrone Mings, Ben Chilwell, Fabian Delph.
Midfielders: Declan Rice, Harry Winks, Jordan Henderson, Ross Barkley, Mason Mount, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Forwards: Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Tammy Abraham, Callum Hudson-Odoi.
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: BorrowMe (BorrowMe.com)
Date started: August 2021
Founder: Nour Sabri
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: E-commerce / Marketplace
Size: Two employees
Funding stage: Seed investment
Initial investment: $200,000
Investors: Amr Manaa (director, PwC Middle East)
The biog
Born November 11, 1948
Education: BA, English Language and Literature, Cairo University
Family: Four brothers, seven sisters, two daughters, 42 and 39, two sons, 43 and 35, and 15 grandchildren
Hobbies: Reading and traveling
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If you go
- The nearest international airport to the start of the Chuysky Trakt is in Novosibirsk. Emirates (www.emirates.com) offer codeshare flights with S7 Airlines (www.s7.ru) via Moscow for US$5,300 (Dh19,467) return including taxes. Cheaper flights are available on Flydubai and Air Astana or Aeroflot combination, flying via Astana in Kazakhstan or Moscow. Economy class tickets are available for US$650 (Dh2,400).
- The Double Tree by Hilton in Novosibirsk ( 7 383 2230100,) has double rooms from US$60 (Dh220). You can rent cabins at camp grounds or rooms in guesthouses in the towns for around US$25 (Dh90).
- The transport Minibuses run along the Chuysky Trakt but if you want to stop for sightseeing, hire a taxi from Gorno-Altaisk for about US$100 (Dh360) a day. Take a Russian phrasebook or download a translation app. Tour companies such as Altair-Tour ( 7 383 2125115 ) offer hiking and adventure packages.
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
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At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
Punchy appearance
Roars of support buoyed Mr Johnson in an extremely confident and combative appearance
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
'Cheb%20Khaled'
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Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
What is blockchain?
Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.
The main difference between blockchain and other forms of DLT is the way data is stored as ‘blocks’ – new transactions are added to the existing ‘chain’ of past transactions, hence the name ‘blockchain’. It is impossible to delete or modify information on the chain due to the replication of blocks across various locations.
Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.
However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.
Other blockchain platforms can offer things like smart contracts, which are automatically implemented when specific conditions from all interested parties are reached, cutting the time involved and the risk of mistakes. Another use could be storing medical records, as patients can be confident their information cannot be changed. The technology can also be used in supply chains, voting and has the potential to used for storing property records.
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
