Sentence of 26 Years in Prison for the "Killer of His Sister" from Yarka

SadaNews - A central occupation court in Haifa sentenced the defendant Roni Habish (43 years old) from Yarka in the Galilee region of northern Israel to an effective prison term of 26 years, after he was convicted of killing his sister, Ronit Habish (42 years old) in their mother’s home in the town on May 11, 2021.

He was also sentenced to 12 months in prison, suspended, and ordered to pay compensation amounting to 258,000 shekels for the benefit of the four children of the murdered.

According to the indictment, "On 11.5.2021, an argument broke out between the defendant and the victim in their mother’s house in Yarka, during which the victim stabbed her brother with a knife in his arm and leg. The defendant then left the house, went to his car, and retrieved a wooden baton. He then returned to the house and attacked his sister with deadly blows to her head, face, and body, resulting in her immediate death."

It was mentioned in the indictment that "it became clear during the trial that the victim, a mother of four children, lived with her mother and her brother, the defendant, who imposed severe restrictions on her, preventing her from leaving the house without his permission, forbidding her from owning a mobile phone, and controlling the details of her daily life."

The prosecution, through attorney Anan Ghanem from the Haifa district attorney’s office, stated that "the incident occurred during a period when the victim was partially separated from her children and was hoping for a protective and containing environment. They described the day of the incident as a 'bloodbath' that ended with the victim's death after being brutally beaten by the defendant using a baton. For these reasons, the prosecution requested a life imprisonment sentence."

The court partially accepted the prosecution’s position and rejected the defense’s claims that considered the incident as self-defense. It ruled that "even if the victim initiated the assault, the conditions for self-defense were not met, as the defendant left the house, then returned armed with the baton and rained blows on his sister’s head with extreme violence, after the danger had subsided."

The court added in its ruling that "despite the fact that the defendant has no criminal record and suffers from a difficult health condition, the brutality of his actions and their devastating impact on the family do not justify any substantial mitigation of the sentence."