Twelve Arabs of Safed were sentenced to life imprisonment at hard labor and two to five years imprisonment for setting fire to the house of Solomon Goldzweig on the day of the riots, when Goldzweig’s wife was found asphyxiated in the burned house. The two sentenced to five years were given lighter sentences because of their youth.
Chief Justice Sir Michael MacDon-
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knell in passing sentence, said he is not satisfied that the accused directly caused the woman’s death, but the court does not doubt that all the accused conspired to destroy Jewish life and property.
The sentenced men include the two Raneim brothers who were condemned to death for the murder of Isaac Mamaan, Jewish mechanic of Safed, the first to fall a victim during the massacre.
During the proceedings, the son of one of the accused begged the court to permit him to plead his father’s case since all the Arab lawyers in Jeusalem and Haifa had refused to defend the prisoners. The court denied this plea but announced that it would permit the accused to plead their own cases. The only person to do this was the father of the petitioner.
Chief Justice MacDonnell, sitting with Judge Litt, has sentenced nineteen for participation in the Safed massacre.
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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.
