Share
17th December 2010
05:30pm GMT
A dog in Israel has been sentenced to death after being possessed by the soul of a dead lawyer.
Reports on the Israeli website Ynet claim that a stray dog that wandered into a courthouse faces death by stoning. A Jewish rabbinical court made the proclamation on the basis that they fear it may be the reincarnation of a lawyer who insulted them.
A large dog entered the Jerusalem financial court mear the ultra-Orthadox neighbourhood of Mea Shearim several weeks ago and would not leave.
The incident reminded a judge of a curse passed on a now deceased secular lawyer about 20 years ago who had insulted the judging panel. In response to the insult, the judges had wished that his spirit would enter the body of a dog (seen as an impure animal in traditional Judaism).
The whereabouts of the animal is not known as is said to have escaped before the sentence could be carried out.
One of the judges had reportedly asked local children to subsequently carry out the stoning on the court's behalf.
According to Ynet, an animal welfare organisation filed a complaint with the police.
But a court manager told Israeli daily Yediot Aharonot the stoning had been ordered by the rabbis "because of the grief he had caused the court.
"They didn't issue an official ruling, but ordered the children outside to throw stones at him in order to drive him away.
"They didn't think of it as cruelty to animals, but as an appropriate way to 'get back at' the spirit which entered the poor dog," the official said.
