Israeli Jewish man gets convicted in Duma village arson attack

A court in Israel convicted a Jewish man on Wednesday in relation to a 2015 terror attack that took the life of a Palestinian child and charged the man's parents on being a part of a terrorist organisation. The parents were convicted for being a part of the Hilltop Youth — a group of Jewish extremists who according to the court wanted to instill a sense of fear among the Arabs while vandalising their houses and threatening their lives.

The Duma Village bombing attack

The conviction was in relation to a bomb attack that took place in the West Bank village in Duma that claimed the life of an 18-month-old child named Ali Saad Dawabsha and critically wounded his parents, who ultimately succumbed to their injuries. Although, Ali's brother was the only survivor of the family, he escaped the bombing with severe burns. 

The accused, who was a minor at that time, confessed that he had surveyed the village along with Amiram Ben-Uliel beforehand. The accused's name was not made public because he was a minor but Amiram has been on trial for three murders and one count of attempted murder alongside a plan to commit a hate crime.

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The Hilltop Youth

While describing the hilltop youth, the court stated that the extremist group aimed its acts of violence and vandalism towards the houses of the Arabs as well as the churches. 

Defense lawyer, Zion Amir, stated that he was surprised by the court's decision and promised that he will be filing an appeal with the Supreme Court.

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"An act of terrorism"

The terror attack renewed the issue of Jewish extremism and prompted allegations that Israel had not done enough to curb such attacks of violence. Prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu termed it an act of terrorism.

According to reports, the Duma Village bombing attack had been planned inside a cave called the "Red House" that was built from an existing Palestinian structure on a site that later turned into an Israeli outpost called the Yishuv HaDaat.

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(With inputs from agencies)