One of the recipients of the 2012 Moskowitz Prize for Zionism is
Attorney Darshan-Leitner, who fights for the interests of victims of
terrorism in Israel, filing lawsuits against major terrorist
organizations, such as Hamas and Hizbullah, while upholding the
victims’ dignity.
As a jurist, she has fought many cases that have received media
attention: She represented the family of an Israeli soldier who was
killed by a lynch mob in Ramallah, claiming NIS 64 million from the
Palestinian Authority. She represented the children wounded in a
terrorist attack in Kfar Darom.
Darshan-Leitner also represented a ballet dancer who filed a
harassment suit against the Egyptian ambassador to Israel, Mohamed
Bassiouny. She represented Israeli citizen Samuel Sheinbein, who
lives in the United States and was tried for murder. The prosecution
wanted Sheinbein to be incarcerated in the United States, but Darshan-
Leitner’s successful fight brought his trial to Israel.
In another case, Darshan-Leitner represented Israeli soldier Daniel
Weiss, suspected of murder in Canada, who was extradited to Israel to
stand trial. As well, she uses the intricacies of international law
to fight the battle against terrorism; for example, Shurat Hadin led
the attempts to halt an illegal flotilla to Gaza by convincing
international insurance companies not to provide the ships’ coverage,
thus negating their participation in the flotilla.
Brig. Gen. (Res.) Avigdor Kahalani, a member of the judging
committee, said, “Nitsana Darshan-Leitner impressed the committee
with her dedication, day in and day out, to preserving the honor of
Israel and to pressing the legal case against those who seek to harm
it and its citizens. Her tenacity and professionalism have achieved
results, including some about which we in this country are still
unaware. People like Nitsana serve as a beacon for society.”
