(JTA) — Israel’s Supreme Court ordered an Israel arms dealer who allegedly sold American-made fighter jet parts to Iran to be extradited to the United States.
Following Sunday’s Supreme Court decision, the justice minister has to sign off on the extradition of Eli Cohen, 66, of Bnei Brak.
The Jerusalem District Court last year approved the extradition request made by the United States in 2014, but Cohen appealed.
Cohen and his brother-in-law Avihai Weinstein allegedly obtained U.S. Army surplus exports available in European countries and brought them to Israel. They reassembled the parts and sold them to Iran via other countries.
Cohen was arrested in May 2014 at the request of the United States at Ben Gurion Airport while attempting to flee Israel. In the aftermath of a U.S. sting operation, he was indicted in a federal court in Connecticut for illegally exporting spare parts for fighter jets to Iran, illegally moving military equipment out of the U.S. and money laundering.
The Supreme Court put Cohen’s name under a gag order in Israel, even though it has been reported in Israel and outside the country, according to Haaretz.
