"I have nightmares and I hardly sleep. Every night I dream that Taiwanese police come into my room and arrest me again for no fault of my own. I wake up in a panic, drenched in sweat, and my body shakes for a long time.
"I was libeled as if I had attacked someone, but I was only defensive. Probably because I'm Israeli, I became the victim of a vehicular attempt. I still don't understand how everything turned on me and in the end I was convicted of assault. The thought of three and a half years in prison in Taiwan horrifies me. If the state doesn't make an effort to intervene diplomatically, as it does with other Israelis, my life will be pointless. I am lost in a place that deprives foreigners, I made a mistake in coming here. I beg, I can't anymore. Take me home."
Trapped in Taiwan - Lior Ben Yosef imprisoned and convicted in moving appeal: "Save me"
The video conversation with Lior Ben Yosef, who is being interviewed for the first time after being convicted in Taiwan, is heartbreaking.
He came to Taiwan about three years ago and set up a thriving cosmetics store to help his mother and sisters financially. That all changed in October 2021, following a physical altercation between him and the driver of a Porsche jeep.
Lior insists that the driver, a Malaysian man, tried to violently take him off the road and then stabbed him in the hand. The driver, for his part, claimed to the police that Lior punched him and tried to rob his bag.
The story of Lior (32), it seems, was taken from Kafka's book. He was arrested and spent five months in a local prison, where he said he experienced anti-Semitism and abuse by guards. His helpless family set up a war room at their mother's home in Petah Tikva. His sisters, working as ants, examined the police investigations, the court testimonies and the complainant's medical documents. They have seen the security video, which was filmed by a street camera in one of the world's most filmed countries, countless times.
"I didn't see the light of day except once a month." Lior in detention, photo: from the family album
The video documenting the incident raises doubts about Lior's guilt and contradicts some of the testimonies of the complainant, the jeep driver and originally from Malaysia, a country that does not hide its hatred of Israel. In addition, the complainant also admitted in his testimony to the police that he recognized Lior as a person of Middle Eastern origin, and assumed that he was Israeli or Iranian and had military training.
"I appealed the verdict, but the driver of the jeep appealed too," Lior says in a broken voice. "He insists that I go to prison for 12 years. Everyone thinks it's just a confrontation on the road, but I think the story is different and has anti-Semitic characteristics, because it seems that the driver followed me for several hours.
"Taiwan took away my work permit and passport, and my feeling is that I'm in prison anyway. Can't make a living and can't return to Israel. Twice I tried to commit suicide, someone please save me."
"Are you trying to kill me?"
Lior, a fitness instructor, looked different from his photos before the arrest from Taiwan. His lush hair is replaced by a cropped haircut and a confused and frightened expression on his face. His confidence faded after his arrest, and he was recently diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder by a local psychiatrist.
He flew to China in mid-2019 and worked on the island of Macau selling hair straighteners and cosmetics from the Dead Sea. Six months later, the coronavirus broke out, his stall was closed, and when the lockdowns began, he moved to Taiwan, which was then open and almost free from the pandemic. He obtained a work permit and initially worked as an employee selling cosmetics in the city of Taichung, in the center of the country. Soon after, he set up shop in one of the city's malls and later met a local girlfriend.
"I wanted to succeed here in the business field, because it's easy to develop here and there are opportunities," he says. "I didn't come to settle down and make Taiwan my country, but like quite a few young people here, I wanted to save up to buy a house and help my family. I employed eight local vendors and felt I was headed in the right direction."
"I've never been involved in criminal activity and I'm not a violent person." Lior before the event, photo: from the family album
At noon on Tuesday, October 12, 2021, Lior went to work out in the gym. He rode his scooter, wearing shorts and a white shirt, and when he finished, he returned to his apartment, took a shower, put on gray skinny jeans and a black shirt, and headed for the mall.
"About 200 meters from my workplace, a white Porsche jeep stopped me, blocked the intersection and the driver swore at me and shouted at me," he recounts the incident that turned his life upside down. "I didn't understand what he was saying, but I think I heard the word 'Israel.' It was a guy my age, and I stupidly stuck out a triple finger to him. I said in English to move forward and continued on my way when the traffic light changed to green.
"As I approached the next intersection, I heard a loud sound of an engine approaching me and felt a blast. Out of the corner of my eye, I realized that the jeep was going to crush me and I was sure I was going to die, but luckily I managed to get onto the sidewalk and that saved my life.
"He stopped next to the sidewalk and actually blocked my way. I was scared, because one minute they shouted at me and now they want to hurt me in a vehicular attack in Taiwan? I got off the motorcycle, went to the driver's seat window, which was open, put my hand in, made a question gesture and said in English, 'Are you trying to kill me?'
"He didn't answer and I saw that he had taken an object and tried to get out of the passenger's side, because there was traffic on the other side. I thought about running away, but I was afraid he would stab me in the back or neck and I decided to prevent him from getting out of the car."
Lior as recorded at noon on the camera network in Taiwan, photo: from the family album
Why did you think the driver wanted to attack you?
"His body language was intimidating and aggressive. He had a knife or screwdriver in his hand and I already saw myself dead. I punched him through the window, but he didn't stop, so I punched him again, and then he grabbed my hand and pulled me into the jeep. We were bickering with half my body out, he moved to the passenger seat, pulled my hand and with his legs kept kicking the door and slamming it against my body. I was in a strange position and my stomach and knees took blows.
Lior Ben Yosef: "As I approached the next intersection, I heard a loud sound of an engine approaching me and felt a blast. I realized out of the corner of my eye that the jeep was going to crush me and I was sure I was going to die, but luckily I managed to get on the sidewalk and that saved my life."
"Suddenly I felt a sharp pain in the hand he had grabbed. I tried to wrestle him with my other hand and noticed an object on the seat. I grabbed him to hit the driver with him, and then he opened his eyes in wonder and released my hand. It was a bag and I left it, because I saw that my hand was squirting blood. I got on my motorcycle and flew to a local clinic, where they stitched me up."
Filing a complaint with the police?
"Honestly, I was traumatized. First they shout at me and then they stab me. I hesitated and decided not to get into legal complications. In Taiwan, Asian citizens are treated kindly, but if you're dark-skinned or from the Middle East, you're treated less well."
So why did you stay?
"I kept debating whether to stay there. I vacillated between wanting to make money and longing for Israel."
Lior on the security cameras just before the violent incident, photo: from the family album
"I was screaming and crying in pain"
While recovering from his injury, Lior received a call from Taichung police. "It was three days after the incident," he says. "I was told to come to the station about the accident and I thought it was a joke, but I still got a lawyer and was quiet. I knew Taiwan was networked with cameras, it's like Big Brother here.
"I came to the interrogation with the feeling that the interrogators knew that the driver of the jeep had tried to assassinate me and had dared to file a complaint, but during the interrogation they told me that he had gone blind as a result of the fight. I didn't understand what they were talking about, because I was injured and not him, only later did I understand from his medical reports that it never happened and never happened."
Immediately after the first interrogation, Lior was arrested and taken to Taichung Prison. "Every day at noon they brought me in for interrogation until midnight, they didn't let me eat, only water," he recalls. "One time they agreed that I would smoke in the bathroom, handcuffed like some criminal. I've never been involved in criminal activity and I'm not a violent person. The behavior towards me is dishonest. I may be a foreigner, but I employ local workers, support the economy and pay taxes."
What did you go through during the five months you were in prison?
"The conditions were very harsh, the food was repulsive and the guards were violent. The cabin was small and dark, with a constant smell of filth and dampness and no sanitary ware. There is no window and everything is strangled.
"The only opening was a sewer with a fan, where the rats would get caught and their corpses would fly into the cell. More than once, when they felt like it, the guards deprived me of food for several days. I didn't see the light of day except once a month, and that too for a few minutes.
Lior: "I appealed the verdict, but the jeep driver also appealed. He insists that I go to prison for 12 years. Everyone thinks it's just a confrontation on the road, but I think the story is different and has anti-Semitic characteristics, because it looks like the driver followed me for several hours."
"On the first day, the guards asked me to sign a form in Chinese, without translation, and I refused. At that moment, they knocked me to the floor and one of them pressed my knee to my neck until I choked. At the same time, they beat me and pulled me from my hands.
"Even after I apologized and said I would sign whatever they wanted, they sprayed me with tear gas, which was their favorite weapon. One time a whole bottle was emptied on me and I couldn't breathe. There were cases where the whole body was sprayed, including intimate organs. Once they asked me to undress and they stood and looked at me. It's sexual harassment."
Were there also manifestations of anti-Semitism?
"There were many. The guards called me 'jew' and laughed when I read Psalms. Every time they asked where my God was now that I was in prison."
"I've never been involved in criminal activity and I'm not a violent person." Lior before the event, photo: from the family album
Who was in the cell with you?
"Mostly nursing and poor prisoners. Once there was a homeless man with me who used to wake up in the middle of the night and touch my face. It was terrible."
Lior: "The guard sprayed me with teargas and put me in solitary confinement for 20 days. I heard other prisoners screaming and internalized that I had to shut up. They took the psalms from me and threw them on the floor, that was one of the hardest moments. I was lonely, hungry and mostly crying."
Did the other prisoners treat you that way, too?
"To be honest, much less. I experienced most of the humiliation and violence from the guards, because if your look doesn't feel good to them, you get beaten and teargas, go down to push-ups, they yell at you, shake you and you're helpless all the time.
"One day the Chabad rabbi came to me and after he left, I sang Shir LaMa'a lot. One of the guards got angry and I had a moment of courage and said I wasn't afraid of him. I shouted 'Shema Yisrael' and the prisoners around laughed. It wasn't natural, because we had to bow down to the guards, and in the eyes of that guard I rebelled.
"הוא ריסס אותי בגז מדמיע ושם אותי ל־20 יום בצינוק, שבו ישבתי כל הזמן בחושך כמעט מוחלט. שמעתי צרחות של אסירים אחרים והפנמתי שאני צריך לשתוק. הם לקחו ממני את התהילים וזרקו אותם על הרצפה. זה היה אחד הרגעים הקשים שלי. הייתי בודד שם, רעב ובעיקר בכיתי.
"אחרי הצינוק רזיתי מאוד. יום אחד התעלפתי ונפלתי על הגב. לא יכולתי לעמוד על הרגליים ושמו אותי בכיסא גלגלים. הסוהרים אמרו שאני מעמיד פנים והמשחק שלהם היה להכריח אותי לעמוד. כשלא יכולתי, מנעו ממני אוכל. אחרי כמה ימים הם לקחו אותי לבית חולים והכריחו אותי לעמוד ברכב. כשלא הצלחתי, משכו אותי בכוח וזרקו אותי על הגב. הם התעלמו ממני כשצרחתי ובכיתי מרוב כאב.
"אושפזתי לשלושה ימים והסוהרים ביקשו מהאחיות לא לתת לי אוכל, כי אני מעמיד פנים. הם לקחו בקבוק מים, שמו אותו במרחק וכשהתחננתי לשתות הם אמרו שאגיע אליו לבד. אפס רחמים כלפי. זמן קצר אחר כך ניסיתי להתאבד בפעם הראשונה. לקחתי שקית ניילון וכרכתי אותה על הפנים. רציתי לחנוק את עצמי כי לא ראיתי מוצא. הסוהרים מנעו ממני להצליח".
ב־13 בדצמבר 2021, בעודו במעצר, הוגש נגד ליאור כתב האישום בגין תקיפה חמורה וניסיון שוד.
ליאור: "כנראה בגלל שאני ישראלי, הפכתי קורבן לניסיון דריסה. אני לא מבין איך הכל התהפך עלי ובסוף אני הורשעתי בתקיפה. המחשבה על שלוש שנים וחצי בכלא בטייוואן מחרידה אותי. אם המדינה לא תעשה מאמץ להתערב, לא יהיה טעם לחיים שלי"
"עשה הכל עבור אחרים"
כ־400 ישראלים עצורים או כלואים היום ברחבי העולם, מרביתם בגין עבירות סמים. הטיפול בהם נעשה דרך המחלקה לישראלים בחו"ל של משרד החוץ והסיוע הוא לרוב הומניטרי, ועיקרו שמירת קשר בין האסיר למשפחתו ווידוא שזכויותיו נשמרות. לעיתים פועלת המדינה לשחרור ישראלי הכלוא בחו"ל, כמו במקרה של נעמה יששכר, שנידונה לשבע וחצי שנות מאסר ברוסיה בשל החזקת תשעה גרם חשיש, וראש הממשלה נתניהו פעל לשחרורה מול נשיא רוסיה פוטין.
מקרה אחר היה בדובאי, שם נעצרה לפני כשנה וחצי פידא כיואן, שנתפסה עם חצי ק"ג קוקאין. אף שהכחישה את ההאשמות, היא נידונה לעונש מוות.
כיואן שוחררה לישראל במארס השנה בעקבות חנינה שקיבלה מנשיא איחוד האמירויות, השייח' מוחמד בן זאיד, כמחווה לרגל הרמדאן עבור נשיא המדינה, יצחק הרצוג.
לאחרונה סייע משרד החוץ לשחרורו של אזרח ישראלי נוסף שנעצר בדובאי, לאחר שנתפס בשדה התעופה כשבתרמילו עשרות גרמים של חומר החשוד כקנאביס.
אחיותיו של ליאור - מאיה נאור (43), מיכל שרון (41) ומירב בן יוסף (38) - אומרות שאין סיבה שגורלו של ליאור לא יהיה זהה, במיוחד לאור החשש שלא זכה לכאורה למשפט צדק.
"ליאור עשה הכל עבור אחרים", אומרת מאיה. "הוא ויתר על שירות קרבי והתגייס כנהג לחיל האוויר כדי שיוכל לסייע בפרנסת המשפחה. כשהשתחרר למד בווינגייט והפך למדריך בחדר כושר. במקביל עבד במכירות ביטוח. כשהבין שיתקשה להשיג דירה בישראל, ניסה את מזלו בחו"ל".
איך קיבלתם את ההודעה על מעצרו?
מירב: "חברה שלו שם התקשרה והיינו בטוחות שמדובר בתקרית מינורית בכביש. פנינו לחדר המצב במשרד החוץ, והם שלחו לליאור את הקונסול לשעבר בטייוואן, רועי וקנין. כמה ימים אחר כך קיבלנו את דו"ח המעצר. אחרי ששלחנו אותו לתרגום, חשכו עינינו. לי בלטו המילים 'עונש מוות או מאסר עולם'. הרגיע אותי שהשופט ציין שאין חשד סביר לשוד".
"הוא בכה בייאוש, אמר שהוא בקן צרעות". האחיות מירב, מיכל ומאיה, צילום: אפרת אשל
מיכל: "לי היה נשמע מוזר שנהג הג'יפ התעוור. מייד שכרנו לליאור עורך דין, אבל לא יכולנו לטוס אליו כי טייוואן היתה סגורה לזרים בגלל הקורונה.
"רק אחרי חודשיים וחצי, בזכות הקונסול, ליאור התקשר אלינו לראשונה. הוא בכה בייאוש ואמר שהוא בקן צרעות".
מייד לאחר השיחה פתחו האחיות את החמ"ל הביתי וביקשו מהסנגור של ליאור לשלוח אליהן כל מסמך הנוגע אליו. בעוד מאיה פנתה לתקשורת, מיכל ומירב עברו בעיון על כל החומרים ממשטרת טייוואן וכך מצאו את גרסתו של נהג הג'יפ לתקרית.
"הוא טען שראה את ליאור עומד בצומת על קו לבן ורדף אחריו כדי לרשום את לוחית הרישוי שלו ולמסור אותה למשטרה", נוברת מיכל במסמכים הסרוקים. "ככה גילינו גם על מצבו הרפואי של הנהג".
מירב, אחותו של ליאור: "היינו בטוחות שמדובר בתקרית מינורית בכביש, אבל כשקיבלנו את דו"ח המעצר ושלחנו אותו לתרגום, חשכו עינינו. לי בלטו המילים 'עונש מוות או מאסר עולם'. הרגיע אותי שהשופט ציין שאין חשד סביר לשוד"
מירב מציגה דפים בסינית ולידם תרגום לאנגלית. "לעדות במשטרה ב־15 באוקטובר 2021 הגיע הנהג עם רטייה על העין", היא אומרת. "הוא טען שהגיע לבית חולים כשדם ניגר מעינו השמאלית, אבל הדו"חות הרפואיים הראו אחרת. כתוב שהוא הגיע כשעינו דומעת וכואבת וראייתו מטושטשת. הוא נכנס לניתוח בעקבות חבלה בעין ובעדשה, שהיתה מלאכותית ולאחר ניתוח קטרקט. הרופאים ציינו בדו"ח שראייתו אמנם מטושטשת לאחר הניתוח, אבל שזה טבעי ושמצבו משתפר. זו היתה הנורה האדומה הראשונה מבחינתנו".
"איראני או ישראלי"
הראיות מהמשטרה והפרוטוקולים מבית המשפט החלו להיערם בדירה בפתח תקווה. ביניהם היה גם דיסק עם תמונות של ליאור על קטנוע וסרטון ממצלמת האבטחה ברחוב.
"כאן גילינו אוצר", אומרת מיכל. "זה התחיל כשבעדות במשטרה הנהג תיאר את ליאור עם מכנסיים קצרים, חולצה לבנה וקסדה מלאה על הראש. מצאנו תמונה שבה הוא לבוש ככה, אבל זה היה יותר מארבע שעות לפני התקרית, ב־13:27, כשליאור היה בדרך לחדר כושר.
"מצאנו גם תמונה שצולמה רגע אחרי התקרית, ב־17:54, שבה רואים שליאור עם מכנסיים ארוכים בצבע אפור וחולצה שחורה. תמוה ביותר - כיצד המתלונן ידע איך ליאור היה לבוש בצהריים? האם עקב אחריו במשך כמה שעות? ומדוע הוא מתאר אותו עם קסדה מלאה כשליאור היה עם מה שקוראים 'קסדת חצי', שבה כל הפנים שלו גלויות?"
מדוע שמישהו יעקוב אחרי ליאור?
מיכל: "התברר לנו שהנהג המתלונן מתגורר כרגע בטייוואן, אבל הוא במקור ממלזיה. זה לא חדש שמדובר במדינה מוסלמית ואנטישמית, שמצהירה על שנאתה ליהודים ולישראל. אולי הוא ראה במקרה את ליאור, שמע אותו מדבר בעברית והחליט להתנכל לו? זה נשמע כמו קונספירציה, אבל אני פתוחה לכל הסבר אפשרי".
"גילינו אוצר". חלק ממסמכי החקירה שמוכיחים אי־דיוקים בגרסת נהג הג'יפ, צילום: מהאלבום המשפחתי
מיכל מציגה את עדותו של הנהג במשטרה ומדגישה משפט שבו הוא ממשיך לתאר את ליאור: "יש לו פנים אופייניות של גבר לבן באזור המזרח התיכון", טען המתלונן. "שמתי לב לזה בגלל שחייתי בחו"ל במשך תקופה ארוכה בענייני עסקים ויש לי הבנה אינטואיטיבית של המאפיינים האתניים האזוריים של כל מדינה. אם אתה מתעקש לשאול, יש לו מאפיינים של איראני או של ישראלי".
חוקר: "כשהצד השני תקף אותך, האם חשדת שהוא מתכוון להרוג אותך?".
נהג: "אני חושב שמטרת התקיפה שלו היתה לשתק אותי כדי לשדוד את התיק שלי. אינטואיטיבית אני חושב שהוא אדם שעבר אימוני קרב". בהמשך ציין הנהג עוד כי חשב שליאור הוא חייל.
"אם זו לא הוכחה שהנהג ידע שליאור ישראלי, אז אני לא יודעת מהי הוכחה", אומרת מירב. "כיצד ידע איך ליאור נראה, לאור העובדה שטען שהיה עם קסדה מלאה והיה חושך? עולה כאן חשד לא קל שמדובר בפשע שנאה".
מיכל, אחותו של ליאור, מציגה את עדות נהג הג'יפ במשטרה ומדגישה משפט שבו הוא מתאר את אחיה: "יש לו פנים אופייניות של גבר לבן באזור המזרח־התיכון. אם אתה מתעקש לשאול, יש לו מאפיינים של איראני או של ישראלי"
רגע התקרית בין ליאור לנהג מתועד בבירור בסרטון שהוגש לבית המשפט. מיכל יודעת לדקלם בעל פה את השעות, הדקות והשניות המדויקות של כל שלב - החל מהרגע שבו הג'יפ נצמד אל ליאור בשעה 17:53.
"מאחר שהם רחוקים מהמצלמה וליאור התכופף אל הג'יפ, לא רואים את העימות ביניהם, אבל אחר כך מתחילה תעלומה גדולה יותר", היא אומרת. "ליאור עזב את האזור פחות מדקה אחרי העימות, ב־17:54, אולם הנהג, באופן מפתיע, נשאר במקומו למרות שלטענתו 'דימם מהעיניים'.
"בשנייה שליאור עזב, ניגש לרכב קטנוע בהיר שעליו רוכב עם קסדה שחורה. ב־17:57 מגיע רוכב שני עם קטנוע כהה וקסדה בהירה, וכמה שניות אחר כך עוזב את המקום האופנוען הראשון. הרוכב השני ניגש למושב הנוסע, אבל המצלמה אינה מצליחה לקלוט בבירור את ההתרחשות במקום והרוכב הזה עוזב ב־18:01.
"שתי דקות אחר כך מגיע רוכב שלישי, שנשאר ליד הג'יפ עד שלמקום מגיעים ב־18:05 אמבולנס ומשטרה ואז מדהים לראות את המתלונן פשוט ניגש אליהם. לאחר מכן הוא חוזר לרכב ונוסע באופן עצמאי לבית החולים. ככה נוהג אדם שהתעוור? הוא אפילו לא התפנה באמבולנס".
מי העד ומי המתלונן?
ארבעה חודשים היה ליאור כלוא בבית המעצר בטאיג'ונג עד שזכה לראות חלק מבני משפחתו.
"בינואר 2022 קיבלנו אישור לבקר אותו וטסתי עם אמא שלי לטייוואן", משחזרת מאיה. "אחרי בידוד של 21 יום, יכולנו להגיע לליאור.
"הביקור הראשון היה ב־8 בפברואר, יום לפני הדיון המשפטי הראשון שלו. לקחנו מונית למקום שכוח אל בטאיג'ונג, שנראה כמו אזור תעשייה, וממול היה יער. נפגשנו עם ליאור דרך זכוכית מפרידה ועם שפופרת טלפון, ממש כמו בסרטים. בכינו. ליאור היה רזה ומוזנח. הוא התחנן שנשחרר אותו והלב שלנו נשבר".
מירב: "אני זוכרת כמה נבהלתי כשראיתי את התמונה שצילמת בכלא. אי אפשר היה לזהות את ליאור כי הוא נראה אחרת, כאילו שאבו ממנו את החיים".
איך צילמת בתוך מתקן הכליאה?
מאיה: "הם לא לקחו את הטלפון אז החזקתי אותו טיפה למעלה. הסוהרים צעקו עלי אבל הצלחתי ללחוץ פעמיים ולעשות גם וידיאו".
The next day, 9 February, Maya and her mother arrived at Taichung Court for a hearing. "Lior arrived in handcuffs and looked miserable," Maya describes. "I also saw the complainant, a man of about 60, tall and thin, with hair pulled back and an eye patch. Suddenly, he started crying. Did a whole show there.
"While he was testifying, I saw that Lior was looking at him in wonder who exactly he was seeing. Lior's defense attorney, who is supposed to be by his side, asked him to apologize to the man, and Lior replied in English that he didn't understand what he was talking about, because he didn't know this man and had never seen him. When we met him again, Lior said something didn't make sense. He confronted a much younger man."
Lior: "The judges told me there was no time for me to speak and did not respond to the evidence I presented. They nodded, but asked no questions and kept poker face. I feel alone, no one loves me and doesn't want to help me. Even if Elijah, the Chinese prophet, comes here, nothing will probably help."
Michal raises another doubt. She takes out the complainant's testimony in court, in which he denied the stabbing and claimed that Lior hit him with his glasses.
"I don't know where the defendant was injured," he said. "When he hit me, my lens broke. If there is any injury, it must have been caused by the broken lens."
In light of his testimony, Michal presents a photo taken by a forensic team that came to inspect the complainant's jeep three days after the incident. "Look," she says, "doesn't it seem strange to you that one whole lens is gone? As if it had been torn out of place and without fractures? Also the glasses and the second lens without any scratch. From exactly what shards of glass was Lior cut? That's when we started talking about criminalization. For example, at the hospital, the complainant claimed that Lior hit him with his cellphone, but later told the police that it was with his bare hands.
"That forensic report was also a treasure for us. For the first time, we learned that the car was washed immediately after the incident and that the complainant claimed in court that 'a mechanic friend surprised him'. Well, really. Is there anyone who doesn't think about concealing evidence?
"Fortunately, the rinsing was not thorough because the report clearly states that small drops of blood were found at the site that underwent a DNA test. One belongs to Lior and the other to an anonymous person, who is not in the police system and is certainly not the complainant."
How do you explain it?
Michal: "It was a mystery, until suddenly an eyewitness came to court that we hadn't heard of before, a young man named Lai. He testified that he saw the entire incident and stayed with the complainant until the police arrived. When you look at the security video, there's no such thing."
Did Lior recognize the witness?
Michal: "Not in court. Only after he saw a photocopy of him from an ID card. He said it was probably the driver of the jeep he confronted. Our hypothesis is that the witness was indeed the driver of the vehicle and that the complainant was the owner of the second scooter. The video shows some kind of happening and a door opening, but it's hard to tell exactly because of the distance of the footage and the darkness. This doubt alone should have led to Lior's release."
Did the defense attorneys present the contradictions in court?
Meirav: "No. They silence us every time. That's why we changed some defense attorneys. It's hard to find someone reliable in a foreign country when you don't know anything there. A lot of money we don't have is thrown away. That's why we started crowdfunding on the ISUPPORT website, in order to find Lior a defense attorney specializing in human rights, one who would really dive into the evidence."
Michal: "At the last hearing, Lior asked to speak and presented to the judges what we presented here, and there are many more. He said the judges were shocked. We were sure that after that he would be eligible, at least because of the doubt."
"The world is closing in on me"
About a month after visiting his family, on March 4, 2022, Lior was released from detention thanks to the intervention of MK May Golan, then chairman of the Israel-Taiwan Friendship Caucus. Golan met with the consulate in Israel and asked that the Taiwanese authorities take Lior's mental state into account.
Less than a week later, on 10 March 2022, Lior was convicted of attempted robbery and assault and sentenced to three years and six months in prison. A month later, both Lior and the complainant filed their appeals.
Lior: "Shortly after the verdict, I felt I had no way out and took pills. I mixed up what I found at home, but it wasn't enough to finish me off. My partner found me and called an ambulance. Ever since I was released, I've felt like a homeless person. I don't have a job and the money only comes from my family."
Last Wednesday, the first hearing on the appeal was held. In a conversation with Lior immediately afterward, he seemed exhausted and mostly disappointed. "The judges told me there was no time for me to speak and did not respond to the evidence I presented. They nodded their heads but didn't ask questions and kept poker face," despair was evident in his voice. "I feel alone here, no one is on my side, doesn't love me and doesn't want to help me. Even if Elijah, the Chinese prophet, comes here, nothing will probably help. They don't care that I was attacked and stabbed, that they tried to run me over. If the state doesn't intervene on my behalf, I'm gone. What to live for?"
Do you have any expectations from the appeal?
"Actually, no, but I have to keep fighting for my innocence. I have no other way to get to Israel, my beloved country, unless I swim there. I'm done with the gentiles."
Are you worried about going back to prison?
"Very. Shortly after the verdict, I felt I had no way out and took pills. I mixed up what I found at home, but it wasn't enough to finish me off. My partner found me and called an ambulance. Ever since I was released, I've felt like a homeless person. I don't have a job and the money only comes from my family.
"Look," he lifts his leg toward the phone's camera. "I have blisters all over my body. Even though I haven't been in prison for more than a year, I suffer from wounds and rashes that are not clear. Like a fool I bow down to everyone who talks to me, it stayed with me from prison, and mostly I stopped smiling."
What keeps you going?
"My mother and sisters. They are lionesses, fighting to the end. I turn from here to President Isaac Herzog and Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, I ask them to stop ignoring me. I have not been convicted of drug trafficking and I am not a criminal. My sisters talked to you, nagged to all Knesset members, promised to help. I hope your heart opens to me. Even if you don't succeed, that's fine, but at least try. The world here is closing in on me."
Responses
The Foreign Ministry said, "Lior Ben-Yosef's case has been known to the Department for Israelis Abroad and the Israeli Mission for many months, and is being handled by all the relevant authorities. It should be emphasized that the Foreign Ministry is prohibited from interfering in legal proceedings being conducted against citizens of the country residing abroad."
Yesh Atid faction chairman MK Boaz Toporovsky, who currently chairs the Israel-Taiwan Friendship Caucus, is trying to help Lior. "I am working in cooperation with and informing the Foreign Ministry with all the relevant entities in Taiwan, in order to bring the affair to a quick end," Toporovsky said. "We have an obligation to help every Israeli in distress abroad, while respecting the local law and the authorities. My team and I are in close contact with Lior's family and are regularly updated on developments. We will continue to help them."
The President's House said in response: "The President's House is working in full cooperation with the Foreign Ministry on this issue. As far as we know, the Israeli delegation in Taiwan and the Department for Israelis Abroad have been treating Lior with great dedication for months, and the President's House will continue to maintain contact with the family."
Avi Li, representative of Taipei's Ministry of Economy and Culture in Tel Aviv, said in response that "Taiwan is a democratic and government-based country with an independent judiciary. Mr. Lior Ben Yosef's indictment is in a judicial proceeding, and as a representative of the administrative authority, I will no longer comment on the legal process. We will continue to work with the Ministry of Economy and Culture in Israel and Taipei to provide consular assistance. It should be emphasized that Taiwan is a country that is not anti-Semitic at all. We have been marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day in Taiwan since 2016, together with Israel. Moreover, Israel's representative in Taiwan once said, in light of the fact that the number of anti-Semitic incidents around the world is on the rise, that Jews have always felt safe in Taiwan."
tala@israelhayom.co.il
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