Defendants acquitted in lynching case in 2015 Beersheba terror attack

Video images of the attack showed Zarhum incapacitated and lying in a pool of his own blood, being kicked by bystanders who thought he was an assailant.

By ALEX WINSTON
Fellow community members attend a memorial ceremony for Habtom Zarhum, an Eritrean migrant who was mistaken for a gunman at a shooting attack earlier in the week, in Tel Aviv, Israel October 21, 2015 (photo credit: BAZ RATNER/REUTERS)
Fellow community members attend a memorial ceremony for Habtom Zarhum, an Eritrean migrant who was mistaken for a gunman at a shooting attack earlier in the week, in Tel Aviv, Israel October 21, 2015
(photo credit: BAZ RATNER/REUTERS)
The Beersheba District Court acquitted two of the defendants involved in the lynching of an Eritrean man during the terror attack at Beersheba Central Bus Station five years ago.
The two men, former soldier Ya'akov Shamba and former Israeli Prison Service officer Ronen Cohen, were accused of aggravated assault for attacking Habtom Zarhum, an asylum seeker from Eritrea, when they mistakenly thought he was the terrorist who carried out the attack.
On October 18, 2015, 21-year-old Israeli Bedouin Muhanad al-Uqbi entered Beersheba's Central Bus Station armed with a pistol and a knife. After shooting and killing IDF Sgt. Omri Levi, he took the soldier's M16 assault rifle and opened fire on passengers inside the terminal, wounding at least 10 people. 
Amid the panic, Zarhum was mistakenly identified as the perpetrator. Security guards shot Zarhum, who was then beaten by a lynch mob as he was lying on the ground.
Video images of the attack showed Zarhum incapacitated and lying in a pool of his own blood, being kicked by bystanders who thought he was an assailant.
Zarhum, 29 at the time, died of his wounds at Soroka University Medical Center the morning after the attack, and an investigation revealed that his death was caused by serious internal injuries caused by gunshot wounds to his upper body and not as a result of the beating from the crowd. Therefore, Shamba and Cohen were only charged with aggravated assault.
In 2018, two of the other people involved in the lynching were sentenced - Eviatar Damari and David Moyal. Moyal was sentenced to 100 days in prison to be served as community service as well as eight months' probation, while Demari was sentenced to four months in prison. The two received reduced sentences under plea bargains.
JTA contributed to this article.


Related Tags
Beersheba