High Court approves demolition of Esther Horgen killer's home

The High Court voted to demolish both the second and third floors of the building.

By YONAH JEREMY BOB
IDF maps house of terrorist suspected of killing Esther Horgen (photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)
IDF maps house of terrorist suspected of killing Esther Horgen
(photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)
The High Court of Justice on Wednesday approved the demolition of the home of the Palestinian terrorist who killed Esther Horgen on December 20.
In a split 2-1 decision, the High Court voted to demolish both the second and third floors of the building where Mohammad Maroh Kabaha and his family have lived, as requested by the IDF.
Justice Anat Baron dissented from the decision, saying that only the third floor should have been demolished since Kabaha lived there separately from his family, who lived on the second floor and were unaware of his murderous plans.
However, Justice Yitzhak Amit and Justice Daphne Barak-Erez ruled that whether a family is aware of their family member’s criminal intent is only one factor in deciding how much of a building to demolish, in connection with a nationalist murder committed as an act of terrorism.
They said that the High Court should generally not question the IDF’s discretion about what deterrence message is needed in a given case to help prevent future terrorism.
In contrast, the petitioners in this case and global critics have said that Israel is isolated among current democracies in carrying out house demolitions against international law.
Israel argues that there is a basis for house demolitions in international law if the purpose is preventative and not punitive.
The Shin Bet has said that during his interrogation, Kabaha said that he planned the attack some six weeks in advance. One reason was to avenge the death of his friend Camal Abu Wae’r – a Palestinian prisoner who fell sick and died in jail.
Looking for a place to carry out an attack, Kabaha went through a hole in the security barrier, and found that Israelis walk in the Rehan forest.
On December 20, smuggling cigarettes in the forest near the fence, he spotted an Israeli woman walking alone and murdered her, a Shin Bet statement said
Though Kabaha has not yet been convicted, according to the Shin Bet he has already confessed to the killing, a factor that weighed heavily with the High Court.
Udi Shaham contributed to this report.


Related Tags
demolition
Terrorist