Dubai’s Appeal Court has acquitted five Israelis, reversing their convictions for aiding and abetting a 19-year-old compatriot in a premeditated murder that occurred in the Business Bay area in May 2023. This week, the court nullified the 10-year prison sentences previously imposed on each of the five accused, clearing them of charges related to assisting the young defendant, H.Y., in the deliberate killing of a 33-year-old Israeli man outside a shisha cafe. The court's decision was based on insufficient and uncorroborated evidence against them. In contrast, the main defendant, H.Y., failed to overturn his life sentence, despite his lawyer's argument of 'self-defence'. Massouma Al Sayegh, H.Y.’s lawyer from Dar Al Balagh Advocates, informed Khaleej Times that the defense will review the appellate court's reasoning and plan to appeal to the Court of Cassation. Earlier, Al Sayegh had contested that her client had no intention to kill the victim. In January, the Dubai Court of First Instance convicted H.Y. of premeditated murder for stabbing the 33-year-old to death, sentencing him to life imprisonment, while the other five suspects received 10-year jail terms each. All six were slated for deportation post-punishment. Al Sayegh maintained that H.Y. was wrongfully accused of planning the murder and that he acted in self-defense when the victim attacked him with a chair. The group was at the shisha cafe when the incident unfolded, with the victim assaulting H.Y. after a dispute escalated. The Dubai Police arrested the suspects within 24 hours of the murder, uncovering that the group had prior knowledge of the victim and his family, with the murder stemming from old disputes and vendettas from their time in Israel. The appellate court requested additional CCTV footage analysis to assess each suspect's involvement independently. Additionally, the court dismissed a civil lawsuit against the acquitted five, while H.Y.’s deportation was confirmed, and a civil lawsuit by the victim's family was directed to the Dubai Civil Court. A hearing at Dubai’s highest court is scheduled soon.