Former Israeli President Katsav convicted of rape
He wanted to clear his name in court
Former Israeli President Moshe Katsav was convicted of two counts of rape yesterday, capping a four-year scandal that shocked the Jewish state and leaves him facing at least eight years in prison.
As a Tel Aviv court handed down the verdict, which also convicted Mr Katsav on charges of sexual harassment, indecent acts and obstruction of justice, the visibly distraught 65-year-old muttered “No, no.”
On the street outside, protesters chanted: “All the world knows, Katsav is a criminal.”
The ruling ends a trial that lasted 18 months and included harrowing accusations, with depictions of Mr Katsav as a sexual predator who routinely harassed his female staff.
The former head of state was accused of twice raping a victim identified as “Aleph” during his term as tourism minister, and sexually assaulting and harassing two other women while he was President.
The verdict came as an indescribable relief to the victim, her lawyer Danny Sror said.
“A huge, huge weight has been lifted from her heart,” he told Channel One TV, adding that it was nonetheless no cause for jubilation.
“It’s sad,” he said. “The President committed rape; this is no ordinary day.”
Mr Katsav proclaimed his innocence throughout the investigation into the rape and harassment charges.
He initially accepted a plea agreement that would have seen him admit the lesser accusations and pay a fine in exchange for prosecutors dropping the rape charges, but later changed his mind, voiding the deal and saying he wanted to clear his name in court.
He was forced to resign as President, handing the largely-ceremonial office to former rival Shimon Peres. Mr Katsav accused his victims of attempting to blackmail him and charged that he was the victim of “a lynching” by prosecutors and the media.
“I have been humiliated, crushed, knocked down, and I suffer,” he said in March 2009.
Yesterday, presiding Judge George Kara, reading the verdict before a packed courtroom, said Mr Katsav “engaged in a campaign of vilification against the plaintiffs”.
And he told the former President his decision to reject the plea deal “was a grave mistake”.
“We believe the plaintiff (Aleph), because her testimony is supported by elements of evidence, and she told the truth,” the judge said.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was “a sad day for the state of Israel and its citizens,” but he lauded the trial as a sign of the strength of the country’s legal system. The rape charges each carry a sentence of between four and 16 years in prison, and Mr Katsav also faces sentencing for charges of sexual harassment, one indecent act, one indecent act with force and obstruction of justice.
“It is inconceivable that a person who committed two acts of rape and other grave offences should not be sent to prison,” Mr Sror said. “I’m not even considering such a possibility.”
Sentencing is scheduled for next month, and the court ordered Mr Katsav to surrender his passport.
His lawyer hinted that he would appeal, saying “we have the strength to take this all the way to Jerusalem” where Israel’s Supreme Court is located, local news site Ynet reported.
But legal expert Moshe Negbi, speaking on public radio, estimated Mr Katsav’s chances of success in an appeal as “zero”.
Yesterday’s verdict was the culmination of an astonishing fall from grace for the Iranian-born Katsav, who rose from impoverished origins as a child immigrant to assume the nation’s top office.