Israel's new justice minister promotes harsher penalties for stone throwers

Israel's new justice minister, Ayelet Shaked, is lobbying for harsher punishments for rock throwers, Israeli media reported Thursday.

Shaked, a known hawk from the nationalist Jewish Home party, is proposing penalties against rock throwers without proving intent to harm, which is needed under the current law, Ynet news website reported.

In November, the previous government voted in favor of harsher punishments against rock throwers, amid frequent riots and clashes in east Jerusalem between Israeli security forces and Palestinian residents.

The judgment set then gives authorities the right to lock up stone or firebombs throwers for 20 years. Shaked's new bill states there is a gap between the 20 years set in the law, requiring providing proof of intent, and what was described as flimsy punishment meted out to stone throwers as intent to harm is hard to establish.

The proposed law will be brought forth on Sunday for the approval of the Ministerial Committee for Legislation, the body in charge of deciding which bill proposals the government will support. This is the first bill proposal introduced by Shaked as the new Justice Minister after assuming the post two weeks ago.

According to the proposal, there will be a novel offense of throwing stones or other objects toward police officers or their vehicles with the intent of disrupting the police from performing their duties.

The bill also proposes canceling an existing clause and setting in a new offense with two levels of throwing either rocks or objects toward public vehicles. These offenses will be punishable by up to 10 years in prison without the need to prove intent.

"The particular mental element of intent to harm, required today, does not solve cases of stone throwing without particular intent," a note explaining the bill read, according to Ynet.

Palestinians usually view rock throwing, which often happens in east Jerusalem and the West Bank, as "non-lethal civil disobedience" against Israeli security forces and their occupation of territories annexed during the 1967 Mideast War. Endit