Israel - Settler Convicted of Killing Palestinians

Israel - An Israeli court convicted a Jewish settler of killing four Palestinians in a West Bank shooting spree last year, part of a bid to stop Israel's pullout from the Gaza Strip.

The Jerusalem district court convicted settler Asher Weisgan of killing the Palestinian workers on Aug. 17, 2005, the day Israel began forcibly evacuating settlers from Gaza. He was found guilty of murder, attempted murder and serious attempt to harm, the prosecution said. Sentencing will take place shortly, a court official said.
Weisgan, a driver, had taken the workers to jobs in Shiloh, a West Bank settlement. Once there, he opened fire on them, killing two. Later he opened fire on other labourers in Shiloh's industrial park, killing two more, before being overpowered.

"The preservation of life is not done through the spilling of blood," the panel of three judges wrote in their ruling.

Convictions of Israelis for crimes committed in the West Bank are rare. An Israeli human rights group said in a report released on Monday that up to 90 percent of cases brought by Palestinians against Israeli settlers end in failure, with files lost or closed for lack of evidence.