The Lod Central District Court on Tuesday approved the extended administrative detention of radical right-wing activist Meir Ettinger. The court approved the extension of his detention order for four months, through June 4. Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon requested the extension on Feb. 1. Ettinger, whom the Shin Bet security agency suspects of being the head of a right-wing Jewish terrorist cell that targets Christian and Muslim holy sites, has been held in administrative detention since August 2015. He has twice gone on hunger strikes to protest the conditions of his detention. Ettinger's attorney, Yuval Zemer, said, "A day in which the court authorizes the continued administrative detention of a man just because of his views is a sad day for democracy."
