By Tony Leys, Des Moines Register, 15 March 2010
Israeli officials say they would be glad to hand over two former Iowa meatpacking supervisors – if U.S. officials could determine where in Israel the men are hiding to avoid felony charges.
The men, Hosam Amara, 45, and Zeev Levi, 51, are former chicken-line supervisors at the Agriprocessors plant in Postville.
They allegedly fled to Israel shortly after a massive immigration raid at the plant in May 2008. They both face federal felony charges of conspiring to harbor illegal immigrants for financial gain and conspiring to obtain false immigration papers for the workers.
Former Agriprocessors laborers have said Amara was a harsh supervisor responsible for many of the worker abuses that made headlines after the raid. For example, they said, he demanded bribes or forced them to buy overpriced cars from him to obtain jobs or assignment to day shifts.
How is it possible that Amara and Levi could find refuge for nearly two years in Israel, one of the United States’ closest allies?