Jewish 'terrorist' convicted of settlement murders, inciting violence

An Israeli court has convicted a US-born Israeli settler of killing two Palestinians in 1997.

Jack Teitel, who lived in the West Bank settlement of Shvut Rachel, was found guilty in the Jerusalem District Court of the two murders, as well as two attempted murders of Palestinians.

He was arrested in 2009 on charges of assault and incitement to violence between 1997 and 2008. His lawyers claimed he was unfit to stand trial because of his psychiatric state.

According to court transcripts, Teitel murdered Palestinian taxi driver Samir Akram in 1997, shooting him at point-blank range. Later that year he shot dead Palestinian shepherd Issa Jabarin.

He was also charged with killing then 15-year-old Ami Ortiz with a bomb hidden in a present and targeting prominent left-wing Israeli historian Zeev Sternhell with a pipe bomb.

He has also been charged with inciting Israelis to harm gay Jews in Israel.