Israeli court postpones verdict in Sheikh Salah trial

The Israeli District Court yesterday postponed the issuance of a verdict in the trial of Islamic Movement leader Sheikh Raed Salah, the movement’s deputy head said.

Sheikh Kamal Al-Khatib told Al-Resalah news site that the court heard Salah’s testimony in the morning and will announce its verdict on 27 October.

According to Al-Khatib, Salah’s lawyers asked the court to postpone the verdict due to the deteriorating security situation in the area.

Al-Khatib said the trial is politically motivated due to Salah’s defence of Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The Israeli District Court had previously issued an eight month jail term against Salah over alleged charges of racist incitement before referring the case to the Magistrate Court.

The Magistrate Court, in turn, handed Salah an 11 month prison term and an eight month suspended sentence.

Later, the court backtracked and appealed for the sentence to be increased to 16 to 42 months.