In brief
A 36‑year‑old Israeli man was found not criminally responsible after a CCTV‑recorded assault on a French nun in Jerusalem’s Old City. The court ruled he was experiencing a psychotic episode and ordered psychiatric treatment for up to six years. The incident, captured on camera, sparked widespread outrage and added to a pattern of anti‑Christian hostility in the area. French authorities condemned the attack as sectarian violence, while Israel’s Foreign Ministry stressed the need to protect religious freedom in the city. The case underscores the struggle between legal accountability and mental‑health considerations amid rising extremist attacks on religious minorities.
A 36‑year‑old Israeli man was found not criminally responsible after a CCTV‑recorded assault on a French nun in Jerusalem’s Old City.
The Jerusalem Magistrates Court ruled that Yona Schreiber was experiencing a psychotic episode when he pushed and kicked the nun, ordering him to a psychiatric hospital for up to six years.
The video, which shows the attacked nun’s face bruised and her head hitting a stone block, sparked outrage across the region and fed into a growing pattern of anti‑Christian hostility in the Old City.
French authorities condemned the attack. A spokesperson for the French Consulate called the gesture “shameful” and a senior official at the French Biblical and Archaeological School described it as an act of sectarian violence.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry urged the nation to protect religious freedom, stressing that “Jerusalem remains a city where every community can worship safely.” It also warned that a rise in violent incidents against Christian clergy threatens the fragile coexistence in the holy capital.
Schreiber’s acquittal and mental‑health sentence has highlighted the tensions between upholding the law and safeguarding public safety, while the incident raises concerns about the spread of extremist actions toward religious minorities.
