An Israeli court sentenced the five of the six Palestinians who escaped from a high-security prison in September to five years jail time for escaping custody on Sunday.
The five prisoners — Mahmoud Ardah, Mohammed Ardah, Iham Kamamji, Yaqoub Qadri and Munadil Infaat — were also handed an eight-months probation, as well as a 5000 shekel ($1487) fine.
The most high-profile escapee, Zakaria Zubeidi, the former leader of Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade and a Fatah activist, is set to receive his conviction later on Sunday.
Five more inmates convicted of assisting in the escape plan were sentenced to four years jail time and a three-month to six-months probation.
During the trial, judge Adi Bambiliya-Einstein said that this unprecedented escape involved daily preparations and led to the excavation of escape tunnels, adding that the “public damage and harm that was caused to the public institution should not be ignored.”
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Last September, the six high-risk security prisoners escaped from Gilboa Prison in northern Israel via a tunnel they had dug in their cell.
The six Palestinians were captured after a two-weeks manhunt. All of the escapees have been previously accused or convicted of partaking in terror activities.
The jailbreak was widely perceived as a significant embarrassment for Israel’s prison establishment, and a commission of inquiry was launched to determine the reasons behind the escape.
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