A resident of Beitar Illit was indicted on two charges of arson after he set fire to the synagogue of former Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef.
The State Prosecutor’s Office has filed an indictment with the Jerusalem District Court against a resident of Beitar Illit, approximately 23 years old, who set fire to the synagogue of former Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef.
He is charged with two deliberate acts of arson that caused property damage and endangered human life. The prosecution is requesting that the court order his detention until the conclusion of legal proceedings in his case.
According to the indictment, submitted by Attorney Ariel Iluz of the Jerusalem District Prosecutor’s Office, the defendant planned to set fire to the door of one of the residents in an apartment building in the Sanhedria neighborhood of Jerusalem, as well as to set fire to the chair and lectern of former Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef in the “Or Chaviv” synagogue nearby, where the rabbi regularly prays.
“To carry out the offenses, the defendant equipped himself in advance with acetone, black spray paint, and a lighter. In the late hours of the night, he arrived at the building, sprayed various graffiti on residents’ doors, poured acetone on a door and the elevator, and set them on fire. As a result, a fire broke out and spread to the floor of the apartment, but was extinguished by the residents. Later that night, the defendant went to the synagogue, poured acetone on Rabbi Yosef’s chair, and set it on fire. The fire spread and caused severe damage: the chair was completely burned, the lectern was heavily damaged, holy books were harmed, and the synagogue’s air conditioner and electrical system were damaged,” the indictment states.
