Stone-Thrower Who Killed Father and Toddler Gets Two Life Sentences
Solemn Moment: Jewish settlers gather for funeral of Asher Palmer and his son, Yonathan, whose car was hit by stone-throwing Palestinians on the occupied West Bank in 2011. Image by getty images
A Palestinian man convicted of the murder of an Israeli man and his infant son in a rock-throwing incident was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences and another 58-year sentence.
Waal al-Araja, a Palestinian security officer, was sentenced Tuesday by the Ofer Military Court for the killing of dual Israeli-American citizen Asher Palmer and his infant son Yonatan in September 2011.
Palmer’s car overturned after a rock crashed through the windshield. Police originally called the crash on Route 60 near Kiryat Arba an accident, but later found a large bloodstained rock in the car and deemed it a terror attack.
Al-Araja admitted during the trial that he threw the rocks, but said he did not intend to kill anyone. The judges said in their verdict earlier this month that Al-Araja understood the harm that throwing rocks could cause and that he intended to harm his victims.
Did you know that only 2% of Forward readers donate to support our nonprofit newsroom? That 2% make it possible for millions to read the Forward without a paywall or subscription — removing any barriers to the full and fair Jewish story.
But while the Forward is free to read, it isn’t free to produce. Big stories — like deep dives into the antisemitism data, political scoops or reporting trips to college campuses — take months of research and fact-checking. All while we keep you informed of what you need to know each day.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Forward Publisher & CEO
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
