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Israeli prosecutors drop case against sanctioned Samaria resident

Elisha Yered has been sanctioned by the European Union, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia over his online advocacy.

Elisha Yered (left), who was briefly detained on charges of involvement in the death of a Palestinian in Samaria, and his attorney outside the Ofer military court, Oct. 5, 2023. Photo by Chaim Goldberg/Flash90.
Elisha Yered (left), who was briefly detained on charges of involvement in the death of a Palestinian in Samaria, and his attorney outside the Ofer military court, Oct. 5, 2023. Photo by Chaim Goldberg/Flash90.

Israeli authorities have dropped a case against right-wing activist Elisha Yered in which he was accused of incitement for urging “revenge” in the face of Palestinian terror, the Honenu legal aid group said over the weekend.

The investigation focused on two X posts in which Yered had warned that “Jews will rise up and defend themselves with their own hands” due to the security establishment’s failure to stem a wave of deadly attacks.

“The security authorities have completely abandoned us. They will wake up only when you start defending yourselves,” the activist had tweeted.

Yered, who has since been sanctioned by the European Union, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia over his online advocacy and alleged interference with an investigation into the deadly 2023 shooting of a Palestinian in Samaria, was summoned for interrogation one year ago.

Honenu attorney Adi Keidar, who represents Yered, voiced satisfaction with the State Attorney’s Office’s decision last week to close the case.

“In a democratic state, one may level criticism at a governmental body. Freedom of expression is a fundamental value in a democracy. We hope that law enforcement authorities will turn their energies and resources to fighting an intensive war on terror instead of harassing residents of Judea and Samaria,” the attorney said in a statement shared by Honenu.

Yered added, “Just as this probe ended without results and did not deter us from continuing our work, every action they take in the future will not stop us. We continue our efforts for the land and people of Israel.”

Akiva Van Koningsveld is a news desk editor for JNS.org. Originally from The Hague, he made the big move from the Netherlands to Israel in 2020. Before joining JNS, he worked as a policy officer at the Center for Information and Documentation Israel, a Dutch organization dedicated to fighting antisemitism and spreading awareness about the Arab-Israel conflict. With a passion for storytelling and justice, he studied journalism at the University of Applied Sciences Utrecht and later earned a law degree from Utrecht University, focusing on human rights and civil liability.
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