Case Number

HCJ 6698/95

Date Decided

3-8-2000

Decision Type

Original

Document Type

Full Opinion

Abstract

Facts: The State of Israel, through the Israel Lands Administration, allocated land in the Eron valley region to the Jewish Agency for Israel. The Jewish Agency, through a cooperative society, set up the settlement of Katzir on this land. The objectives of the Jewish Agency for Israel include the settlement of Jews throughout the land of Israel. For its part, the cooperative society will only grant membership to Jews. Petitioners, a couple with two daughters, are Arabs. They requested to live in the settlement of Katzir. According to petitioners, their request was immediately denied by reason of their being Arabs, since the land was allocated for the exclusive establishment of a Jewish settlement.

Held: The Court held that the principle of equality is one of the foundational principles of the State of Israel. It applies to all actions of every government authority. The Court held that the policy constituted unlawful discrimination on the basis of nationality. The Court held that the fact that the settlement was built through the Jewish Agency for Israel could not legitimize such discrimination.

Justice Y. Kedmi in a separate opinion was of the view that only a declaratory judgment regarding the status and weight of the value of equality with regard to the allocation of state land was warranted along with the clarification that the judgment is forward-looking and does not provide grounds to re-examine acts performed in the past.

Keywords

Administrative Law -- Judicial review, Constitutional Law -- Equality Before the Law, Constitutional Law -- Property Rights, International Law -- Occupied territories

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