Adalah to Supreme Court: Arab Landowners of Lajoun Entitled to Return of their Private Property Confiscated by the State in 1953
On 10 September 2009, the Supreme Court of Israel held a hearing on an appeal filed by Adalah on behalf of 486 Arab landowners in Lajoun against a 2007 District Court decision, which refused their demand to return 200 dunams of their land. The District Court rejected the claimants’ main argument that the state's confiscation of their land is fundamentally invalid and that the land must be returned to the original owners, because it has not been used for “essential settlement and development needs,” in accordance with the order issued by the Minister of Finance in 1953. The District Court also ordered the Justice Ministry to register the land in the name of the Development Authority, a state body. Adalah Attorneys Suhad Bishara and Adel Badir submitted the lawsuit to the District Court and the appeal to the Supreme Court.
The lands of Lajoun were previously part of Umm al-Fahem, the second largest Arab town in Israel, located in Wadi Ara in the center of the country. The 200-dunam plot, known as “plot 20420”, was confiscated from Palestinian citizens of Israel, along with other plots of land totaling 34,600 dunams, on 15 November 1953. The land was expropriated following an order of then-Minister of Finance, Levi Ashkol, in accordance with his powers under Article 2 of the Land Acquisition (Validation of Acts and Compensation) Law – 1953 (hereafter the “Land Acquisition Law”) for essential settlement and development needs.
At the Supreme Court hearing, Adalah Attorneys Hassan Jabareen and Ala' Mahajneh, and private Attorneys Walid Asliya and Tawfiq Jabareen, who are also representing a group of the landowners, argued that the District Court erred in deciding that planting a man-made forest falls within the definition of a “settlement needs.” They emphasized that the District Court’s interpretation of “settlement needs” is broader than that contained in the Israeli property law, and is incompatible with the language of the Land Acquisition Law. They also argued that the District Court’s interpretation violates the landowners’ constitutional right to property, as guaranteed by the Basic Law – Human Dignity and Freedom.
The hearing was attended by dozens of landowners from Lajoun who expressed their intention to continue their struggle to restore the land and to use all legal and public means available to them, despite the overwhelming odds against them. The residents made clear that their faith in the justice of their cause motivates their strength and determination to struggle for the return of their private property.
C.A. (Civil Appeal) 4067/07, Jabareen, et al. v. The State of Israel, et al. (case pending)
