Adalah requests state refrain from implementing Israeli Settlements Law
Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel sent a letter yesterday (15 February 2017) to the Israeli Attorney General’s (AG) Office demanding that it order state authorities to refrain from implementing the recently-approved Settlements Regularization Law.
The law aims to retroactively “legalize”, under Israeli law, settlement outposts, which have been built on private Palestinian land.
Last week, on 8 February 2017, Adalah, together with the Jerusalem Legal Aid Center (JLAC) and Al Mezan Center for Human Rights in Gaza, petitioned the Israeli Supreme Court to cancel the highly-controversial law on the grounds that it violates international humanitarian law and is unconstitutional.
The petition was filed on behalf of 17 local Palestinian authorities in the West Bank (15 rural councils and two municipalities).
Adalah Attorney Suhad Bishara wrote in the letter to the AG that: "Simultaneously with our petition, we filed a request for an interim inunction asking the respondents [Israeli state authorities] to refrain from implementing the law due in part to the irreversible damage that could be caused by its implementation prior to a final court decision on the petition.
"The court has ordered the state to respond within 30 days both to the request for a temporary injunction and to the petition. Two days ago, on 13 February 2017, the [Settlements Regularization] Law was published in the registry… and thus went into effect. Given these circumstances, and due to the serious implications of this law, it would be appropriate to order the state authorities to refrain from implementing the law until a court ruling on the matter."
Case Citation: HCJ 1308/17, Silwad Municipality v. Knesset (case pending)
READ: Adalah's letter to the Israeli Attorney General’s Office [Hebrew]
READ: Supreme Court order to state to respond within 30 days [Hebrew]
