A Jewish convert who collaborated with his Palestinian militant brother to plan a bombing attack on Israelis was sentenced to seven years in prison.
Asaf Ben-David was born Hussam Sawafta in the West Bank town of Tubas before converting to Judaism and becoming an Israeli citizen. His brother, Salah Sawafta, a member of the terrorist group Islamic Jihad, obtained a large amount of nitric acid with the help of his brother, according to court documents. Nitric acid can be used to make bombs.
Salah Sawafta was killed in December 2006 by Israeli troops. Ben-David lived as an Orthodox Jew, married a Jewish woman and had four children during the 1990s, The Associated Press said. He was convicted this month by a Haifa court.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
