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Message: <br /><br /> If you are having trouble reading this email, you may view this article online at: http://www.jweekly.com/15310/full/15310/once-a-hero-of-sephardi-politics-mordechai-guilty-of-sex-charges/ <br /><br /> <b>Once a hero of Sephardi politics, Mordechai guilty of sex charges</b> <br /> Friday, March 23, 2001 | by <p>NAOMI SEGAL </p> <br /><br /><p>JERUSALEM—In a ruling that Israeli women's groups are hailing as a landmark, a former Cabinet minister and candidate for prime minister has been convicted of sexually assaulting and harassing two women.<br /><br /> In its ruling Wednesday, a Jerusalem court cleared Yitzhak Mordechai of similar charges brought by a third woman, citing inconsistencies in her testimony. But the judges stressed this should not be interpreted as a repudiation of the woman's claim.<br /><br /> The third woman, identified only as S., was a secretary in Mordechai's office when he served as transportation minister under former Prime Minister Ehud Barak.<br /><br /> It was this woman's complaint that prompted prosecutors to investigate Mordechai—and which ultimately persuaded the two other women to come forward with their own complaints.<br /><br /> Mordechai, whose wife left him after the allegations surfaced, faces a maximum of seven years in prison. He is expected to be sentenced next month.<br /><br /> Jeered by a group of women as he emerged from court, a haggard-looking Mordechai insisted he was innocent.<br /><br /> "I will fight with all my strength and to my last breath through every legal process to prove my innocence," Mordechai told reporters after the verdict was read out.<br /><br /> Mordechai had accused the media of a witch-hunt, and his attorney, Dror Arad Ayalon, accused the media and police of "conspiring" against his client.<br /><br /> Supporters said Mordechai had been charged with acts that were a norm in the Israeli army and political circles for decades.<br /><br /> But women's organizations hailed the ruling as a breakthrough in efforts to combat sexual harassment, saying it would encourage more women to come forward.<br /><br /> "It says the rules of the game have changed," said Zehava Gal-On, the Meretz legislator whom S. first approached with her complaint.<br /><br /> Mordechai stepped down as transportation minister last year when charges were filed against him. Though he remains a Knesset member, he has been virtually absent from legislative activity in the past year.<br /><br /> Mordechai said Wednesday he would suspend further participation in the Knesset until a decision is made on the appeal he lodged against the verdict, according to the Jerusalem Post.<br /><br /> Mordechai had served as defense minister in the government of former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.<br /><br /> In 1999, after a split with Netanyahu, he left the Likud and ran for prime minister at the head of the newly formed Center Party, becoming the first major Sephardi candidate for prime minister.<br /><br /> Just days before the May 1999 election, Mordechai stepped out of the race, leaving the field open for Barak, who eventually won.<br /><br /> Mordechai went on trial last November for committing forced indecent acts on the three women while serving in the army, as defense minister and as transportation minister.<br /><br /> On Wednesday, Mordechai was found guilty of attacking one of two women, identified only as A., who was a soldier in his office when Mordechai headed the army's northern command in the 1990s.<br /><br /> In one incident in 1992, Mordechai drove A. to a secluded area and tried forcibly to kiss her. When she resisted his advances, he made her walk back to the base in the dark.<br /><br /> In another instance, he brought A. to his apartment in Netanya and then forcibly lay on top of her, wearing only a towel.</p> <p> </p>

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