Lee Zeitouni affair

Lee Zeitouni (Hebrew: לי זיתוני; April 25, 1986–September 16, 2011) was an Israeli Pilates instructor, born in Kibbutz Neve Ur in northern Israel.

At the age of 25, she was struck and killed by two French nationals, Claude Khayat and Eric Robic, who were driving a black BMW sports utility vehicle on September 16, 2011, in Tel Aviv.

[1] On September 16, 2011, Zeitouni was heading to a gym to teach a class when a black BMW sports utility vehicle with two occupants struck her on Pinkhas Street at 6:45 a.m.

Detectives determined that Robic and Khayat had been drinking in Tel Aviv and Ramat Gan, and left a bar at around 6 A.M. on the day that Zeitouni was killed.

[4] Soon after, Israeli police asked Interpol for assistance in bringing the French tourists into custody, and an international arrest warrant was issued for Robic and Khayat.

Zeitouni's boyfriend said "The fact that Claude Khayat was caught speeding in his new Audi A8 proves that France has become a sanctuary for fugitives... We expect the authorities in Israel to have them extradited and bring them to justice.

"[11] Bigot confirmed that there was close cooperation between the Israeli and French law enforcement officials, and that both Israel and France were dedicated to bringing the suspects to justice.

[12][13] In late December 2011, Carla Bruni, the wife of then French President Nicolas Sarkozy, wrote a personal letter to Zeitouni's mother, Kate, in which she shared her condolences and sorrow.

[14] In January 2012, Christophe Bigot stated before a Knesset panel that justice would be served in the case of Lee Zeitouni, but there was little chance that the two would be extradited to Israel from France.

The flyers had the slogan "license to kill" written on them, and the group hoped to appeal to the French passengers, many of whom are Jewish, to assist in extraditing them from France.

The French newspaper Le Figaro dedicated its headline to the story, and explained that the two suspects enjoyed a legal loophole that allowed them to remain free.