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Founder of settlement movement dies aged 80
Source: Times of Israel
Rabbi Moshe Levinger, who spearheaded militant Gush Emunim, was convicted of manslaughter for shooting into crowd in Hebron in 1990
Rabbi Moshe Levinger, who founded the militant Gush Emunim movement which pushed Jewish settlements in the West Bank, died aged 80 on Saturday, relatives said.
Born in 1935 in Jerusalem to a family of German origin, Levinger studied in his youth under Rabbi Tzvi Yehudah Kook, the spiritual father of religious nationalism.
Shortly after the 1967 Six-Day War in which Israel captured east Jerusalem and the West Bank, Levinger and a group of like-minded people decided to settle in the occupied territory.
Read more: http://www.timesofisrael.com/founder-of-settlement-movement-dies-aged-80/
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Thousands Pay Last Respects To Rabbi Levinger
?w=477
Thousands of people arrived in Hebron to eulogize Rabbi Moshe Levinger, founder of the town of Kiryat Arba, and the man who reestablished Jewish life in Hebron.
Among those who spoke were President Ruby Rivlin, Minister Uri Ariel, Rabbi Dov Lior and Rabbi Haim Druckman.
The eulogies were held outside the Tomb of the Patriarchs.
2:26 PM The procession is heading down to the cemetery.
http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/thousand-pay-last-respects-to-rabbi-levinger/2015/05/17/
?w=477
Thousands of people arrived in Hebron to eulogize Rabbi Moshe Levinger, founder of the town of Kiryat Arba, and the man who reestablished Jewish life in Hebron.
Among those who spoke were President Ruby Rivlin, Minister Uri Ariel, Rabbi Dov Lior and Rabbi Haim Druckman.
The eulogies were held outside the Tomb of the Patriarchs.
2:26 PM The procession is heading down to the cemetery.
http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/thousand-pay-last-respects-to-rabbi-levinger/2015/05/17/
Criminal charges
"Levinger has been arrested and charged at least 10 times starting in 1975 in relation to incidents in Hebron or Kiryat Arba.
In 1984, Rabbi Levinger was arrested on suspicion of involvement with the Gush Emunim Underground. In July 1985, Levinger was fined approximately $15,000 and given a three-month suspended sentence for trespassing in the house of a Hebron woman and attacking her six-year-old son. Levinger told the Jerusalem Magistrate Court that the boy had thrown a stone at his son.
In 1988, Levinger was indicted on two separate criminal charges involving events in Hebron. On September 30, 1988, Levinger, who had been hit a week before by a rock, was attacked by stoners who smashed his windshield, injuring his son. He reached an Israeli checkpoint. Levinger pulled out his pistol, turned round and went back down the streets shooting at shop windows, killing Palestinian store owner Hassan Abdul Azis Salah. A customer was also wounded. Levinger claimed he had been surrounded by Palestinians who threatened his life, and only to have shot into the air to defend himself against stone throwers. In a press conference following the shooting, Levinger said, "Regarding the actual deed, I will respond when the time comes. I have already said that as far as the substance of the case goes, the State Attorney's Office knows that I am innocent and that I did not have the privilege of killing that Arab. Not that I may not have wanted to kill him or that he did not deserve to die, but I did not have the privilege of killing that Arab." He was charged with "manslaughter, causing bodily harm in aggravated circumstances and intentionally damaging property". His trial began in August 1989, despite protests by 13 right-wing Knesset members and hundreds of supporters. Levinger pleaded not guilty to the charges but accepted a plea-bargain to the lesser charge of negligent homicide. He was sentenced to 5 months imprisonment and 7 months suspended, of which he served 92 days. During his imprisonment, he was given leave to attend a public event in Hebron. On his release in August 1990, he told Israel Radio, "If I'm in a situation of danger again, I'll again open fire. I hope that next time, I will be more careful and I won't miss the target."
In another case, which related to an event five months before the first, he was alleged to have assaulted a Palestinian woman and her two children after other Arab children had "made fun of" his daughter. At his trial in May 1989, the magistrate dismissed the evidence of the Arab witnesses on the grounds that they were interested parties and wanted to see Levinger in prison for ideological reasons, and also dismissed the evidence of two IDF soldiers who testified to the assault. Six weeks after Levinger's release from prison on his separate negligent homicide conviction (see above), the Jerusalem District Court overturned his acquittal on the earlier assault charges. He was sentenced to 4 months imprisonment, plus an additional 10 days for an outburst in court. He served about two months. On his release in March 1991, he said "Over the years, I've carried out dozens of actions and all of them were against the law. It was worthwhile to violate the law, as all these actions advanced the whole Land of Israel.
In July 1995, Levinger was sentenced to seven months imprisonment for a violent altercation in the Tomb of the Patriarchs in September 1991. The court found that Levinger had pulled down the partition separating Jewish and Muslim worshippers and assaulted an IDF officer. He served four months in prison in 1996.
In December 1995, Levinger was sentenced to six months in prison and six months suspended for an incident in June 1991. He was found guilty of rioting in the Hebron market, of overturning stalls, forcing other merchants to close their shops, and of firing his pistol His defense was that he was attacked by Palestinians throwing rocks.
In December 1997, Levinger was sentenced to six months jail and fined $2,300 for disturbing Muslim prayers at Hebron's Tomb of the Patriarchs in 1994 and of blocking an army commander from entering Kiryat Arba.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moshe_Levinger
...no wonder the huge turnout at his funeral.
"Levinger has been arrested and charged at least 10 times starting in 1975 in relation to incidents in Hebron or Kiryat Arba.
In 1984, Rabbi Levinger was arrested on suspicion of involvement with the Gush Emunim Underground. In July 1985, Levinger was fined approximately $15,000 and given a three-month suspended sentence for trespassing in the house of a Hebron woman and attacking her six-year-old son. Levinger told the Jerusalem Magistrate Court that the boy had thrown a stone at his son.
In 1988, Levinger was indicted on two separate criminal charges involving events in Hebron. On September 30, 1988, Levinger, who had been hit a week before by a rock, was attacked by stoners who smashed his windshield, injuring his son. He reached an Israeli checkpoint. Levinger pulled out his pistol, turned round and went back down the streets shooting at shop windows, killing Palestinian store owner Hassan Abdul Azis Salah. A customer was also wounded. Levinger claimed he had been surrounded by Palestinians who threatened his life, and only to have shot into the air to defend himself against stone throwers. In a press conference following the shooting, Levinger said, "Regarding the actual deed, I will respond when the time comes. I have already said that as far as the substance of the case goes, the State Attorney's Office knows that I am innocent and that I did not have the privilege of killing that Arab. Not that I may not have wanted to kill him or that he did not deserve to die, but I did not have the privilege of killing that Arab." He was charged with "manslaughter, causing bodily harm in aggravated circumstances and intentionally damaging property". His trial began in August 1989, despite protests by 13 right-wing Knesset members and hundreds of supporters. Levinger pleaded not guilty to the charges but accepted a plea-bargain to the lesser charge of negligent homicide. He was sentenced to 5 months imprisonment and 7 months suspended, of which he served 92 days. During his imprisonment, he was given leave to attend a public event in Hebron. On his release in August 1990, he told Israel Radio, "If I'm in a situation of danger again, I'll again open fire. I hope that next time, I will be more careful and I won't miss the target."
In another case, which related to an event five months before the first, he was alleged to have assaulted a Palestinian woman and her two children after other Arab children had "made fun of" his daughter. At his trial in May 1989, the magistrate dismissed the evidence of the Arab witnesses on the grounds that they were interested parties and wanted to see Levinger in prison for ideological reasons, and also dismissed the evidence of two IDF soldiers who testified to the assault. Six weeks after Levinger's release from prison on his separate negligent homicide conviction (see above), the Jerusalem District Court overturned his acquittal on the earlier assault charges. He was sentenced to 4 months imprisonment, plus an additional 10 days for an outburst in court. He served about two months. On his release in March 1991, he said "Over the years, I've carried out dozens of actions and all of them were against the law. It was worthwhile to violate the law, as all these actions advanced the whole Land of Israel.
In July 1995, Levinger was sentenced to seven months imprisonment for a violent altercation in the Tomb of the Patriarchs in September 1991. The court found that Levinger had pulled down the partition separating Jewish and Muslim worshippers and assaulted an IDF officer. He served four months in prison in 1996.
In December 1995, Levinger was sentenced to six months in prison and six months suspended for an incident in June 1991. He was found guilty of rioting in the Hebron market, of overturning stalls, forcing other merchants to close their shops, and of firing his pistol His defense was that he was attacked by Palestinians throwing rocks.
In December 1997, Levinger was sentenced to six months jail and fined $2,300 for disturbing Muslim prayers at Hebron's Tomb of the Patriarchs in 1994 and of blocking an army commander from entering Kiryat Arba.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moshe_Levinger
...no wonder the huge turnout at his funeral.
