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Israel Online · Sep 16, 2026

Israel Online — video status

*Israeli Freed From Iraqi Kurdistan Prison After 11 Years* Ben Hassin, an Israeli-Canadian Kurdish Jew who spent 11 years imprisoned in Iraqi Kurdistan, has been released and is expected to arrive in Israel in the coming days. Hassin was sentenced to death in 2020 following the death of a taxi driver in 2015. Hassin maintained that he acted in self-defense after the driver heard him speaking Hebrew and threatened to turn him over to ISIS. His death sentence was later overturned following a reconciliation agreement with the victim’s family. After his release, Hassin recited the Jewish Shehecheyanu blessing and described the moment as “tears of joy.”

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