BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — American rapper Wiz Khalifa was sentenced by a court in Romania on Thursday to nine months in jail for drug possession, more than a year after he took part in a music festival in the Eastern European country.
Khalifa was stopped by Romanian police in July 2024 after allegedly smoking cannabis on stage at the Beach, Please! Festival in Costinesti, a coastal resort in Constanta County. Prosecutors said the rapper, whose real name is Cameron Jibril Thomaz, was found in possession of more than 18 grams of cannabis, and that he consumed some on stage.
The Constanta Court of Appeal handed down the sentence after Khalifa was convicted of “possession of dangerous drugs, without right, for personal consumption,” according to Romania’s national news agency, Agerpres. The decision is final.
The decision came after a lower court in Constanta County in April issued Khalifa a criminal fine of 3,600 lei ($830) for “illegal possession of dangerous drugs,” but prosecutors appealed the court’s decision and sought a higher sentence.
Romania has some of the harsher drugs laws in Europe. Possession of cannabis for personal use is criminalized and can result in a prison sentence of between three months and two years, or a fine.
It isn’t clear whether Romanian authorities will seek to file an extradition request, since Khalifa is a U.S. citizen and doesn't reside in Romania.
The 38-year-old Pittsburgh rapper rose to prominence with his breakout mixtape “Kush + Orange Juice.” On stage in Romania last summer, the popular rapper smoked a large, hand-rolled cigarette while singing his hit “Young, Wild & Free.”
FILE - Wiz Khalifa, a cast member in "Spinning Gold," poses at the premiere of the film, Wednesday, March 29, 2023, at the Directors Guild of America in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)
FILE - Wiz Khalifa, a cast member in "Spinning Gold," arrives at the premiere of the film, Wednesday, March 29, 2023, at the Directors Guild of America in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)
JERUSALEM (AP) — An attempt by Israeli authorities to write a routine parking ticket in an ultra-Orthodox neighborhood in Jerusalem turned violent on Thursday as members of the community quickly gathered to protest, attacking and injuring 13 police officers, authorities said.
The violence reflected growing tensions between the Israeli authorities and the ultra-Orthodox, known as Haredim, as the government mulls plans to draft them into the military. Clashes have often broken out recently when Israeli authorities have entered the crowded and insular ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods.
Police said the clashes first broke out after an inspector tried to issue a parking ticket and was met with violence and threats. The police made one arrest. Hundreds of ultra-Orthodox protesters soon arrived, trying to free the suspect, damaging police cars and throwing stones and eggs at the police, they said.
In response, police threw stun grenades, fired water cannons and beat protesters with batons, according to videos circulating on Israeli social media.
Residents accused the police of trying to arrest the man for failing to register for the draft — an accusation police denied.
Five policemen were brought to the hospital and several others were lightly injured. As of Thursday afternoon, police said they had arrested four people and an were investigating several others.
Photos circulating on Israeli social media showed an overturned car and vehicles with broken windshields.
Later on Thursday, ultra-Orthodox protesters blocked a major highway along Israel’s coast, police said. No violence was immediately reported.
When Israel was founded in 1948, a small number of gifted ultra-Orthodox scholars were granted exemptions from the draft, which is compulsory for most Jews. But with a push from politically powerful religious parties, those numbers have swelled over the decades.
Many secular Israelis — especially those who have served multiple rounds of duty in the latest war between Israel and the Palestinian militant Hamas group in Gaza — now support rolling back that exemption and drafting the ultra-Orthodox.
However, measures to draft the ultra-Orthodox have been met with staunch opposition and at times violence from religious protesters, who claim that serving in the military will destroy their way of life.
Roughly 1.3 million ultra-Orthodox Jews make up about 13% of Israel’s population and oppose enlistment because they believe studying full time in religious seminaries is their most important duty.
Ultra Orthodox protesters clash with Israeli police during a violent disturbance in Jerusalem, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/ Mahmoud Illean)
Israeli police officers work to restore order during a violent disturbance by Ultra-Orthodox Jewish protesters in Jerusalem, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/ Mahmoud Illean)
Israeli police shoot a water canon as they work to restore order during a violent disturbance by Ultra-Orthodox Jewish protesters in Jerusalem, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/ Mahmoud Illean)
Ultra-Orthodox Jewish protesters run for cover from a gas grenade thrown by Israeli police during a violent disturbance in Jerusalem, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)
Israeli police officers scuffle with young Ultra-Orthodox Jewish protesters during a violent disturbance in Jerusalem, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)
