Peeler of the Jewish restaurant: "I only saw this Israeli flag"

He was "very excited" when it happened. "I thought: I'm doing something, but when I saw later what I had done, I was shocked." Saleh A. is clearly doing his best to show repentance. But still: it was not more than an impulsive act. "I only had the Israeli flag in mind."

Last December, Palestinian-Syrian refugee Saleh became news because of his attack on the kosher restaurant HaCarmel in Amsterdam. Dressed in a Palestinian scarf and flag, he shouted the windows of the restaurant. He entered and took an Israeli flag with him, after which he was arrested by the police. On Wednesday, he found himself in the Amsterdam court, for vandalism and theft – not for violence or terrorist motives.

The HaCarmel case caused a lot of unrest in the Jewish community. The deputies came to eat by solidarity. The attack has become a symbol of growing anti-Semitism among Muslims – and the impact that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has on the country's borders.

At a previous session, in late December, the judges ruled that the suspect had to be examined by a psychologist first. Since then, "the necessary things have happened", as the president of the multiple criminal chamber has desiccated. A. quarreled with the probation service, did not show up for appointments. As a result, he spent 52 days in pretrial detention, although he was initially released.

The court wanted more clarity on the grounds of A. Wednesday, but he did not hear much news. Syrian, 29, a small man in a black hoodie, told his interpreter that something had been broken when he heard that President Trump would move the US embassy to Jerusalem. He grabbed a wooden stick and went to HaCarmel.

"But what do these people have to do with the restaurant?", The judge wanted to know. No answer.

A. it's also contradicted. First he apologized, later he said "no regret" for his "action against President Trump". "I only thought later: why should I let the Netherlands pay for it?"

The judge: "That's exactly the question I wanted to ask you."

Terrorist motive?

In his indictment the officer of justice largely to the question that lies above this case: why A. is not prosecuted for a terrorist motive? Because there is no indication for that, he said. A. If Allahu akbar & # 39; (Allah is great) had called during the windows, he was particularly confused. There was, however, a "discriminatory aspect," according to the officer: A. had chosen a case with a "undoubtedly Jewish identity". This had a huge impact on the owners of HaCarmel and the Jewish community as a whole – and therefore weighs in the penalty: 52 days of unconditional prison plus three months of conditional prison.

The officer showed compassion towards A. He lived an "improbable misery" in his life: raised in a Syrian refugee camp, his father and brother were taken to Europe by Libya, capsized on the way and the Netherlands also lost his four-month-old daughter.

According to the probation reports and a psychiatrist, it seems that A. is suffering from a severe form of post-traumatic stress disorder. He also suffers from a mild intellectual disability and consumes too much cannabis. His life in the Netherlands is a mess: he is divorced, he is invaded by his ex-wife from the guardianship of their son, has no work and speaks Dutch very badly, according to his lawyer [19659009] Voting Factory

In the audience hall A. solemnly promised. "I have aged, I want to lead a better life," he said. And: "I promised myself that I do not want to cause any more problems." He also pointed out that he had no criminal record.

The Crown thought otherwise. The officer fears that he will not resort to violence again because of his personal problems, and therefore demands that he live alive accompanied.

A.'s lawyer did not dispute the facts. He even made "a big compliment" to the police and the prosecutor's office because they "kept a cool head and were not sensitive to the vote". He fought against the media, which A. allegedly portrayed as "a terrorist and Syrian gang". But A. is not even an anti-Semite, he argued. "He does not hate Jews, only the Israeli army." Otherwise, A. would have chosen another kosher restaurant, which is closer to his house, but – unlike HaCarmel – "no Israeli flag hanging on the outside". 19659002] The judges came, very unusually, in an hour with their verdict. "So right now, it's clear to everyone."

They also saw "no terrorist intent". However, they found his action "disruptive for society and for this city". They sentenced A. to ten weeks in prison, six of them unconditionally. Because he's been in detention for more than six weeks, he does not need to return to the cell. A. is also seen to impose a contact and area ban, and he has to pay a few hundred euros in damages. Judges also imposed mandatory assisted living.

At one point, they gave up the sentence: his Palestinian flag gets A. return.