12 nov 2017
Israel’s Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan is set to propose a law that will allow police not to return the bodies of slain Palestinians to their families.
According to Hebrew news sources, the law would allow Israeli police to rule against returning bodies of anti-occupation attackers to their families if the funeral is likely to turn into a mass demonstration, or “if incitement against Israelis will be featured.”
Commenting on the proposal, Erdan claimed that funerals for anti-occupation protesters have turned into “festivals of incitement” that promote further attacks.
Erdan added that Palestinians whose bodies have been withheld by the Israeli authorities will be buried only if families adhere to the conditions set by police.
The Israeli occupation authorities have withheld the bodies of dozens of Palestinian protesters killed by the Israeli forces following alleged anti-occupation attacks. Their families have also been made to endure tough punitive measures.
Ironically, the new law would allow Israeli police to decide if families could be trusted not to turn funerals into riots.
According to Hebrew news sources, the law would allow Israeli police to rule against returning bodies of anti-occupation attackers to their families if the funeral is likely to turn into a mass demonstration, or “if incitement against Israelis will be featured.”
Commenting on the proposal, Erdan claimed that funerals for anti-occupation protesters have turned into “festivals of incitement” that promote further attacks.
Erdan added that Palestinians whose bodies have been withheld by the Israeli authorities will be buried only if families adhere to the conditions set by police.
The Israeli occupation authorities have withheld the bodies of dozens of Palestinian protesters killed by the Israeli forces following alleged anti-occupation attacks. Their families have also been made to endure tough punitive measures.
Ironically, the new law would allow Israeli police to decide if families could be trusted not to turn funerals into riots.
6 nov 2017
Israeli Army Minister Avigdor Lieberman, on Sunday, sent an appeal to Israeli President Reuven Rivlin urging him to grant pardon to IOF soldier Elor Azaria, who is currently serving a 14-month prison sentence for deliberately killing a Palestinian injured detainee in February 2017.
"I would like to ask that you accept Elor Azaria's request, and grant a pardon for the remaining period of his prison term," Lieberman wrote in a letter to Rivlin, calling the shooting of the Palestinian "an operational mistake".
"People with much more senior positions than Azaria have been pardoned for acts similar or even more severe than Azaria," Lieberman wrote.
“We must put an end to the affair that shook the Israeli society, and at this time show leniency and mercy to the soldier,” he urged.
“We send our daughters and sons to defend the security of the state,” he wrote, “placing them in complex situations unlike any other in the world, and demanding that they act courageously, resolutely, professionally and morally.”
Azaria was convicted of “manslaughter” after he was caught on film in March 2016 shooting the Palestinian young man Abdel Fattah al-Sharif as he lay immobilized on the ground.
"I would like to ask that you accept Elor Azaria's request, and grant a pardon for the remaining period of his prison term," Lieberman wrote in a letter to Rivlin, calling the shooting of the Palestinian "an operational mistake".
"People with much more senior positions than Azaria have been pardoned for acts similar or even more severe than Azaria," Lieberman wrote.
“We must put an end to the affair that shook the Israeli society, and at this time show leniency and mercy to the soldier,” he urged.
“We send our daughters and sons to defend the security of the state,” he wrote, “placing them in complex situations unlike any other in the world, and demanding that they act courageously, resolutely, professionally and morally.”
Azaria was convicted of “manslaughter” after he was caught on film in March 2016 shooting the Palestinian young man Abdel Fattah al-Sharif as he lay immobilized on the ground.
5 nov 2017
The Israeli Ministerial Committee for Legislation on Sunday approved a bill that allows to sue Israel's boycotters and ask for financial compensation.
The Hebrew TV channel Seven reported that the bill allows the Israelis who find themselves affected by the boycott campaigns to demand financial compensation without proof of damage.
The bill is set to be presented to the Knesset for final approval, which means that all left-wing organizations calling for boycotting Israel culturally, academically and economically in the occupied Palestinian territories will be subjected to immediate judicial prosecution.
The original law was approved by the Knesset in 2011, but the Israeli Supreme Court overturned the clause related to claiming financial compensation without citing evidence of damage.
According to the new law, the institutions and bodies that encourage or advocate anti-Israel boycott campaigns will be fined 100,000 shekels ($29,000) if there is no evidence of damage and 500,000 shekels ($150,000) if the evidence is there.
The Hebrew TV channel Seven reported that the bill allows the Israelis who find themselves affected by the boycott campaigns to demand financial compensation without proof of damage.
The bill is set to be presented to the Knesset for final approval, which means that all left-wing organizations calling for boycotting Israel culturally, academically and economically in the occupied Palestinian territories will be subjected to immediate judicial prosecution.
The original law was approved by the Knesset in 2011, but the Israeli Supreme Court overturned the clause related to claiming financial compensation without citing evidence of damage.
According to the new law, the institutions and bodies that encourage or advocate anti-Israel boycott campaigns will be fined 100,000 shekels ($29,000) if there is no evidence of damage and 500,000 shekels ($150,000) if the evidence is there.
By Issam Aruri
In recent months, the security and humanitarian situation in Palestine has deteriorated considerably. Palestinian human rights organisations have documented unprecedented settlement expansion, emboldened by the international community's continued hand-wringing in the face of Israel's violations of international law.
Just last week, 176 new settlement units were announced to be built in occupied East Jerusalem. Residency revocations for Palestinians in Jerusalem are on the rise, forcing people out of their lifelong communities.
And now, the Knesset is considering an unprecedented bill that would annex some of the West Bank's largest illegal settlements to Jerusalem.
Demographic change
Dubbed the "Greater Jerusalem" Bill, it constitutes a de facto annexation of settlements built on occupied Palestinian land and regarded as illegal by international law and the European Union.
Among the settlements included in the bill is Ma'aleh Adumim, the largest settlement in the Jerusalem area and the Gush Etzion settlement cluster. The bill is sponsored by a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right–wing Likud party and enjoys his backing.
We must be clear that the Greater Jerusalem Bill is an exercise in demographic change through annexation. Under the Bill, the settlements' over 150,000 inhabitants would be considered residents of Jerusalem, enabling them to vote in and sway municipal elections.
It will also downgrade the status of three Palestinian neighbourhoods in Jerusalem, demoting the status of the approximately 100,000 Palestinians who live there - essentially creating Jerusalem's own Bantustans.
The bill's intention, according to its authors, Israeli Knesset Minister Yoav Kish and Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz, is two-fold: to increase the proportion of Jews to Palestinians in Jerusalem to ensure Jewish dominance of the city, and territorial expansion.
Katz openly expressed his intention for the bill to "ensure a Jewish majority in the united city and to expand its borders by adding 150,000 residents to the area of a greater Jerusalem," adding that it would serve to challenge all who question the Jewish people’s right to the whole of Jerusalem as the capital of a Jewish homeland.
Netanyahu voiced his support for the bill in October, indicating that the bill will pass quickly and with the government's blessing.
De-facto annexation
Demographic engineering is in clear violation of international law, as it uses manipulation of the makeup of the civilian population to accomplish political goals. Currently, Palestinians make up nearly 40 percent the population of Jerusalem.
If the bill passes, the addition of settler populations into Jerusalem's census will reduce that percentage to 32 percent. It is a sinister way of ensuring that Jerusalem is washed of its Palestinian identity and, by extension, Palestinian rights and interests, while still calling itself democratic.
Enacting laws that are anti-democratic or violate international law, however, is not a rarity for Israel. This January, the Knesset passed a law that retroactively legalises Israeli outposts built on private Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank.
International calls to abandon the "Regularisation Law" proved futile as the Knesset rapidly moved to pass it.
Palestinian human rights organisations, including my organisation, the Jerusalem Legal Aid and Human Rights Center (JLAC), are concerned that the Great Jerusalem Bill could face an eerily similar fate with public outcry and condemnations proving to be little more than lip service that only delays the inevitable.
Palestinians have had their human rights trampled upon systematically throughout the prolonged military occupation. We have lost huge swathes of our lands and had our communities fragmented. We have been warning for years that Israel's actions amount to de-facto annexation.
With the passage of the Greater Jerusalem Bill, our warnings would become a codified reality.
Genuine action
This should sound an alarm to European officials. Not only do these actions undermine UN Security Council resolutions and EU Foreign Affairs Council conclusions, they erode the potency of international law as a whole. More so, they destroy the prospects of peace.
Despite discussions about renewing the peace talks, and the Palestinian reconciliation agreement signed in Cairo last month, measures like the Greater Jerusalem Bill undo any positive steps made toward solving the conflict.
On Sunday, Israel's Ministerial Committee for Legislation delayed its vote on the bill to reportedly allow time for "diplomatic preparation". European officials should seize the time offered by the delay to unequivocally condemn the Greater Jerusalem Bill and spell out the diplomatic consequences of its passage.
This time, we need more than measured consideration and public statements. We need genuine action.
There are very real steps officials can take to pressure Israel to act in accordance with international law. They include an end to preferential trade agreements so long as settlement activity continues and support for accountability mechanisms.
Given the serious prospect of annexation, the European Commission should immediately halt any discussion about holding the EU-Israel Association Council.
If the international community continues to remain silent in the face of Israeli violations, it will be very hard to undo the damage being done to the prospects of achieving justice and peace.
European officials must stand tall and take the lead to stop the Greater Jerusalem Bill.
- Issam Aruri is the General Director of the Jerusalem Legal Aid and Human Rights Center (JLAC). He is a founding member of the Palestinian NGO Network (PNGO), which is a coalition of 140 Palestinian civil society organisations. His article was published in the Middle East Eye website.
In recent months, the security and humanitarian situation in Palestine has deteriorated considerably. Palestinian human rights organisations have documented unprecedented settlement expansion, emboldened by the international community's continued hand-wringing in the face of Israel's violations of international law.
Just last week, 176 new settlement units were announced to be built in occupied East Jerusalem. Residency revocations for Palestinians in Jerusalem are on the rise, forcing people out of their lifelong communities.
And now, the Knesset is considering an unprecedented bill that would annex some of the West Bank's largest illegal settlements to Jerusalem.
Demographic change
Dubbed the "Greater Jerusalem" Bill, it constitutes a de facto annexation of settlements built on occupied Palestinian land and regarded as illegal by international law and the European Union.
Among the settlements included in the bill is Ma'aleh Adumim, the largest settlement in the Jerusalem area and the Gush Etzion settlement cluster. The bill is sponsored by a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right–wing Likud party and enjoys his backing.
We must be clear that the Greater Jerusalem Bill is an exercise in demographic change through annexation. Under the Bill, the settlements' over 150,000 inhabitants would be considered residents of Jerusalem, enabling them to vote in and sway municipal elections.
It will also downgrade the status of three Palestinian neighbourhoods in Jerusalem, demoting the status of the approximately 100,000 Palestinians who live there - essentially creating Jerusalem's own Bantustans.
The bill's intention, according to its authors, Israeli Knesset Minister Yoav Kish and Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz, is two-fold: to increase the proportion of Jews to Palestinians in Jerusalem to ensure Jewish dominance of the city, and territorial expansion.
Katz openly expressed his intention for the bill to "ensure a Jewish majority in the united city and to expand its borders by adding 150,000 residents to the area of a greater Jerusalem," adding that it would serve to challenge all who question the Jewish people’s right to the whole of Jerusalem as the capital of a Jewish homeland.
Netanyahu voiced his support for the bill in October, indicating that the bill will pass quickly and with the government's blessing.
De-facto annexation
Demographic engineering is in clear violation of international law, as it uses manipulation of the makeup of the civilian population to accomplish political goals. Currently, Palestinians make up nearly 40 percent the population of Jerusalem.
If the bill passes, the addition of settler populations into Jerusalem's census will reduce that percentage to 32 percent. It is a sinister way of ensuring that Jerusalem is washed of its Palestinian identity and, by extension, Palestinian rights and interests, while still calling itself democratic.
Enacting laws that are anti-democratic or violate international law, however, is not a rarity for Israel. This January, the Knesset passed a law that retroactively legalises Israeli outposts built on private Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank.
International calls to abandon the "Regularisation Law" proved futile as the Knesset rapidly moved to pass it.
Palestinian human rights organisations, including my organisation, the Jerusalem Legal Aid and Human Rights Center (JLAC), are concerned that the Great Jerusalem Bill could face an eerily similar fate with public outcry and condemnations proving to be little more than lip service that only delays the inevitable.
Palestinians have had their human rights trampled upon systematically throughout the prolonged military occupation. We have lost huge swathes of our lands and had our communities fragmented. We have been warning for years that Israel's actions amount to de-facto annexation.
With the passage of the Greater Jerusalem Bill, our warnings would become a codified reality.
Genuine action
This should sound an alarm to European officials. Not only do these actions undermine UN Security Council resolutions and EU Foreign Affairs Council conclusions, they erode the potency of international law as a whole. More so, they destroy the prospects of peace.
Despite discussions about renewing the peace talks, and the Palestinian reconciliation agreement signed in Cairo last month, measures like the Greater Jerusalem Bill undo any positive steps made toward solving the conflict.
On Sunday, Israel's Ministerial Committee for Legislation delayed its vote on the bill to reportedly allow time for "diplomatic preparation". European officials should seize the time offered by the delay to unequivocally condemn the Greater Jerusalem Bill and spell out the diplomatic consequences of its passage.
This time, we need more than measured consideration and public statements. We need genuine action.
There are very real steps officials can take to pressure Israel to act in accordance with international law. They include an end to preferential trade agreements so long as settlement activity continues and support for accountability mechanisms.
Given the serious prospect of annexation, the European Commission should immediately halt any discussion about holding the EU-Israel Association Council.
If the international community continues to remain silent in the face of Israeli violations, it will be very hard to undo the damage being done to the prospects of achieving justice and peace.
European officials must stand tall and take the lead to stop the Greater Jerusalem Bill.
- Issam Aruri is the General Director of the Jerusalem Legal Aid and Human Rights Center (JLAC). He is a founding member of the Palestinian NGO Network (PNGO), which is a coalition of 140 Palestinian civil society organisations. His article was published in the Middle East Eye website.
31 oct 2017
Israel’s Ministerial Committee for Legislation is set to discuss a bill ruling for sentencing Palestinian anti-occupation attackers to death.
The bill was forwarded to the Knesset in 2015 and received only the approbation of Israel Beytenou political party. The other parties along with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the bill.
Following the anti-occupation stabbing attack carried out in July in Halamish settlement, built on Palestinian lands northwest of Ramallah, Israel Beytenou forwarded the bill once again.
The proposed bill was passed on to the Legislation Committee so as to garner votes in favor of the move by next week.
The bill gives a green light to the execution of a Palestinian attacker from the occupied West Bank following instructions from the Israeli war minister.
The bill was forwarded to the Knesset in 2015 and received only the approbation of Israel Beytenou political party. The other parties along with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the bill.
Following the anti-occupation stabbing attack carried out in July in Halamish settlement, built on Palestinian lands northwest of Ramallah, Israel Beytenou forwarded the bill once again.
The proposed bill was passed on to the Legislation Committee so as to garner votes in favor of the move by next week.
The bill gives a green light to the execution of a Palestinian attacker from the occupied West Bank following instructions from the Israeli war minister.
29 oct 2017
A US official on Sunday expressed the US administration's opposition to the Israeli government's vote on a controversial bill that entails a de facto annexation of West Bank settlements to Jerusalem.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that the US is discouraging the actions that it believes will distract the concerned parties from focusing on the advancement of peace negotiations.
He continued that the Jerusalem expansion bill is considered one of those actions, Reuters reported.
Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, on Sunday decided to delay the vote on a draft law to include a number of West Bank settlements under the Israeli-controlled Jerusalem municipality.
Chairman of the Israeli government coalition, David Bitan, announced, based on Netanyahu's instructions, that the vote on Greater Jerusalem bill will be delayed until political coordination with the US is made despite that fact that a ministerial committee was scheduled to vote on the bill on Sunday to expedite its submission to the Knesset to be ratified.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that the US is discouraging the actions that it believes will distract the concerned parties from focusing on the advancement of peace negotiations.
He continued that the Jerusalem expansion bill is considered one of those actions, Reuters reported.
Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, on Sunday decided to delay the vote on a draft law to include a number of West Bank settlements under the Israeli-controlled Jerusalem municipality.
Chairman of the Israeli government coalition, David Bitan, announced, based on Netanyahu's instructions, that the vote on Greater Jerusalem bill will be delayed until political coordination with the US is made despite that fact that a ministerial committee was scheduled to vote on the bill on Sunday to expedite its submission to the Knesset to be ratified.
Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, on Sunday decided to delay vote on a proposed bill that entails the annexation of West Bank settlements to Jerusalem.
Chairman of the Israeli government coalition, David Bitan, said that the vote on Greater Jerusalem bill will be delayed until political coordination with the US is made based on Netanyahu's instructions.
A ministerial committee was scheduled to vote on Greater Jerusalem bill on Sunday to expedite its submission to the Knesset to be ratified.
Ma'ariv newspaper reported that Netanyahu fears that passing the bill without coordination might affect the Israel-US relations as well as his expected visit to Britain next Wednesday where he is scheduled to meet with Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May.
Greater Jerusalem bill, initiated by Israel's Transportation and Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz, and authored by MK Yoav Kisch, is aimed at including the settlements of Ma'ale Adumim, Beitar Illit, Giv'at Ze'ev, Gush Etzion and Efrat under the Israeli Jerusalem municipality.
Based on the bill, the settlements will become sub-municipalities of Jerusalem and their residents will be given the right to vote in municipal elections.
According to Israeli officials, 2017 will witness the approval of 12,000 settlement units in the West Bank. Statistics indicate that Israel's settlement activity in 2017 is over four times higher than 2016.
Such Israeli racist laws spark massive waves of condemnation among Palestinians and the international community.
Chairman of the Israeli government coalition, David Bitan, said that the vote on Greater Jerusalem bill will be delayed until political coordination with the US is made based on Netanyahu's instructions.
A ministerial committee was scheduled to vote on Greater Jerusalem bill on Sunday to expedite its submission to the Knesset to be ratified.
Ma'ariv newspaper reported that Netanyahu fears that passing the bill without coordination might affect the Israel-US relations as well as his expected visit to Britain next Wednesday where he is scheduled to meet with Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May.
Greater Jerusalem bill, initiated by Israel's Transportation and Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz, and authored by MK Yoav Kisch, is aimed at including the settlements of Ma'ale Adumim, Beitar Illit, Giv'at Ze'ev, Gush Etzion and Efrat under the Israeli Jerusalem municipality.
Based on the bill, the settlements will become sub-municipalities of Jerusalem and their residents will be given the right to vote in municipal elections.
According to Israeli officials, 2017 will witness the approval of 12,000 settlement units in the West Bank. Statistics indicate that Israel's settlement activity in 2017 is over four times higher than 2016.
Such Israeli racist laws spark massive waves of condemnation among Palestinians and the international community.
25 oct 2017
The website of Haaretz newspaper on Wednesday reported that the Israeli Ministerial Committee for Legislation is set to vote on Sunday on a bill to annex a number of West Bank settlements to Jerusalem.
The website pointed out that the bill, providing for annexing the settlements of Gush Etzion, Ma'aleh Adumim, Efrat, Beitar Illit and Givat Ze'ev to Jerusalem, was initiated by MK Yoav Kish of Likud party with the support of Transportation and Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz.
According to this bill, which is part of a project called "Greater Jerusalem", the Israeli local authorities and settlement neighborhoods beyond the Green Line will be included under Israel's Jerusalem municipality.
The website noted that the bill is expected to be approved especially since it enjoys the support of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other parties in the government coalition.
Haaretz added that the Palestinian Authority is likely to strongly oppose the bill that will be seen as part of a de facto annexation of the West Bank territories.
Minister Katz said that the move would add thousands of Israeli residents to Jerusalem and reduce the number of Palestinians there.
The website pointed out that the bill, providing for annexing the settlements of Gush Etzion, Ma'aleh Adumim, Efrat, Beitar Illit and Givat Ze'ev to Jerusalem, was initiated by MK Yoav Kish of Likud party with the support of Transportation and Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz.
According to this bill, which is part of a project called "Greater Jerusalem", the Israeli local authorities and settlement neighborhoods beyond the Green Line will be included under Israel's Jerusalem municipality.
The website noted that the bill is expected to be approved especially since it enjoys the support of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other parties in the government coalition.
Haaretz added that the Palestinian Authority is likely to strongly oppose the bill that will be seen as part of a de facto annexation of the West Bank territories.
Minister Katz said that the move would add thousands of Israeli residents to Jerusalem and reduce the number of Palestinians there.
23 oct 2017
A Palestinian committee in the city of Hebron, in the southern occupied West Bank, has reportedly received an order by the Israeli Supreme Court to evacuate a group of Israeli settlers illegally occupying a Palestinian home in the area.
The home, which belongs to the Abu Rajab family, has been embroiled in a legal battle with Israeli settlers who claim that they purchased the rights to the home, though the Palestinian homeowners and the Israeli state have maintained that the settlers forged the documents.
Despite several court orders preventing the settlers from moving into the home, they forcibly took over the home in late July.
The state of Israel ordered the 15 settlers families living in the Abu Rajab house to evacuate last month, however, the Israeli Supreme Court ordered, in September, to delay the evacuation, based on an appeal submitted by the settlers.
According to Palestinian activists, who held a sit-in protest in front of the home on Friday, the Hebron Reconstruction Committee “was able to issue an order by the Israeli Supreme Court to evacuate Israeli settlers of the Abu Rajab building as it was proven that their entrance to the building was not legal.”
During the sit-in, Israeli forces detained coordinator of the Youth against Settlement group Issa Amro, according to Ma’an News Agency.
Located in the center of Hebron — one of the largest cities in the occupied West Bank — the Old City was divided into Palestinian and Israeli-controlled areas, H1 and H2, following the Ibrahimi Mosque massacre. The Abu Rajab home is located near to this mosque.
Some 800 notoriously aggressive Israeli settlers now live under the protection of the Israeli military in the Old City, surrounded by more than 30,000 Palestinians.
Palestinian residents of the Old City face a large Israeli military presence on a daily basis, with at least 20 checkpoints set up at the entrances of many streets, as well as the entrance of the Ibrahimi Mosque itself.
The home, which belongs to the Abu Rajab family, has been embroiled in a legal battle with Israeli settlers who claim that they purchased the rights to the home, though the Palestinian homeowners and the Israeli state have maintained that the settlers forged the documents.
Despite several court orders preventing the settlers from moving into the home, they forcibly took over the home in late July.
The state of Israel ordered the 15 settlers families living in the Abu Rajab house to evacuate last month, however, the Israeli Supreme Court ordered, in September, to delay the evacuation, based on an appeal submitted by the settlers.
According to Palestinian activists, who held a sit-in protest in front of the home on Friday, the Hebron Reconstruction Committee “was able to issue an order by the Israeli Supreme Court to evacuate Israeli settlers of the Abu Rajab building as it was proven that their entrance to the building was not legal.”
During the sit-in, Israeli forces detained coordinator of the Youth against Settlement group Issa Amro, according to Ma’an News Agency.
Located in the center of Hebron — one of the largest cities in the occupied West Bank — the Old City was divided into Palestinian and Israeli-controlled areas, H1 and H2, following the Ibrahimi Mosque massacre. The Abu Rajab home is located near to this mosque.
Some 800 notoriously aggressive Israeli settlers now live under the protection of the Israeli military in the Old City, surrounded by more than 30,000 Palestinians.
Palestinian residents of the Old City face a large Israeli military presence on a daily basis, with at least 20 checkpoints set up at the entrances of many streets, as well as the entrance of the Ibrahimi Mosque itself.
22 oct 2017
The Hebrew newspaper Maariv reported on Sunday that members of Israeli Knesset of the government coalition intend to present a new bill to the Ministerial Committee for Legislation blocking the eviction of Jewish-only settlements in the northern West bank.
According to the newspaper, both MKs Shuli Mualem, of the Jewish Home, and David Bitan, head of the government coalition of Likud party, will present the bill based on an agreement with Head of the Shomron Regional Council Yossi Dagan.
The bill will allow Jewish settlers to return to the settlements that were evicted in 2005 including Sanur, Kadim, Homesh and others.
According to the newspaper, both MKs Shuli Mualem, of the Jewish Home, and David Bitan, head of the government coalition of Likud party, will present the bill based on an agreement with Head of the Shomron Regional Council Yossi Dagan.
The bill will allow Jewish settlers to return to the settlements that were evicted in 2005 including Sanur, Kadim, Homesh and others.
19 oct 2017
The Israeli higher court of justice on Wednesday evening issued a verdict ordering the Israeli police to evacuate a group of Jewish settlers from a Palestinian house belonging to the family of Abu Rajab in the Old City of al-Khalil.
Head of al-Khalil rehabilitation committee Imad Hamdan told the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) that his committee filed through a lawyer several lawsuits and appeals with the Israeli higher court until it was able to extract a final decision from the Israeli public prosecution ordering the removal of all settlers from the house.
With the help of the Israeli army and police, the settlers forcibly broke into the house on July 25, 2017 and evicted the Palestinian residents (the owners), and they have been staying there illegally since then.
They had already taken over the house in 2012 and 2013, but they were evacuated later.
The home has been the subject of a long-standing legal case, with settlers claiming they legally purchased the property.
However, the Abu Rajab family rejects that claim, and Israel's civil administration has admitted that the settlers have been unable to provide proof of that purchase.
Head of al-Khalil rehabilitation committee Imad Hamdan told the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) that his committee filed through a lawyer several lawsuits and appeals with the Israeli higher court until it was able to extract a final decision from the Israeli public prosecution ordering the removal of all settlers from the house.
With the help of the Israeli army and police, the settlers forcibly broke into the house on July 25, 2017 and evicted the Palestinian residents (the owners), and they have been staying there illegally since then.
They had already taken over the house in 2012 and 2013, but they were evacuated later.
The home has been the subject of a long-standing legal case, with settlers claiming they legally purchased the property.
However, the Abu Rajab family rejects that claim, and Israel's civil administration has admitted that the settlers have been unable to provide proof of that purchase.
