In Landmark Ruling on Adalah Petition, Israeli Supreme Court Permits Arab Author Alaa Hlehel to Travel to Beirut to Receive Prestigious Literary Prize
On 13 April 2010, the Supreme Court of Israel issued a precedent-setting decision on a petition submitted by Adalah to allow Arab author and journalist Alaa Hlehel to travel to Lebanon to participate in and receive an award from the “Beirut 39” festival. The court permitted the travel, despite the opposition of the Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior of Israel, both of whom refused to issue a permit.
At a hearing held on the petition on 12 April 2010, the Attorney General’s Office argued that it is the Minister of the Interior’s policy that travel to Lebanon, and other countries defined as "enemy states" under Israeli law, is prohibited except in extreme humanitarian cases. The court commented that the state’s position does not clarify what constitutes an extreme humanitarian case, and does not provide a convincing explanation for why Mr. Hlehel was prevented from travelling to Beirut. The state admitted in its response to the petition that there was no security reason to prevent Mr. Hlehel's travel.
The court also issued an order nisi demanding that the state explain why it does not set clear, equitable criteria to govern requests for Israeli citizens to visit prohibited travel states.
Adalah emphasized that the Supreme Court’s decision confirms that the policy of imposing a cultural blockade on Palestinian citizens of Israel and a ban on contact with the larger Arab nation that Israel has followed since 1948 is arbitrary and discriminatory.
