Yigal Amir, the assassin of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, submitted a petition today (Thursday) to the Lod District Court against the Prison Service, requesting permission to study Torah with another inmate from the secure wing of the prison, as reported by Channel 13 news correspondent Aviad Glickman. According to Amir, the appeal was filed after the Prison Service did not allow him to study in the company of the other inmate.
In the appeal filed by Amir, it was written, "Over the past decade, the practice has been established that the petitioner studies Torah in the company of another inmate," the appeal stated, "and there was a period when even with several inmates who were recommended by the prison rabbi, this happened almost every day of the week."
According to the petitioners: "This practice has been ongoing continuously since then until about a year and a half ago. At that time, the petitioner's study partner was attacked by other inmates while on his way to study Torah with the petitioner. As a result of this, the joint study was interrupted for a period and did not resume, among other things, due to the deterioration of the health of that study partner inmate."
It is further stated in the petition: "The decision of the respondent to deny the petitioner the ability to continue studying Torah together infringes immediately upon his right to freedom and prevents him from exercising his basic human right. Moreover, it is an unreasonable decision that did not give due weight to the ongoing harm caused to the petitioner due to minimal interaction with other inmates. Furthermore, it is not based on sufficient factual basis and is not reasoned."
As previously reported, about two months ago, the publicist and former panel member of the "Patriots" program, Attorney Ari Shamai, expressed himself in an unusual manner amid controversy and argued that it was time to release Amir. Shamai made these remarks in reference to the Tiberias District Court's ruling in which the court rejected Boaz Yosef's candidacy for mayor. According to him: "I am pleased to hear one sentence – that the Supreme Court and the High Court reject personal laws – if so, then it is time to release the murderer Yigal Amir, as personal laws have been legislated against him as well."