Israeli Attorney General will not intervene in Sheikh Jarrah case New Israel-Palestine Conflict

The Israeli Attorney General has informed the Supreme Court that he will not intervene in the judicial proceedings in a high-level Sheikh Jarrah case, as four Palestinian families occupied in East Jerusalem are suffering an immediate forced eviction in favor of Israeli settlement organizations.

In a statement Monday, Avichai Mendelblit said there was “no place” for him to intervene in the proceedings.

Last month, the Supreme Court gave the Attorney General until June 8 to file a legal opinion on the case.

In a letter sent to the court, Mendelblit wrote that considering the many legal proceedings that had taken place over the Sheikh Jarrah district over the years, he concluded that it was not necessary for him to appear in court.

The decision of the Attorney General leaves the Supreme Court free to decide that four Palestinian families should appeal their appeals against the two sentences of the lower court in the lower house.

The four families make up a group of more than 500 Palestinians – 28 families – forced out of the neighborhood.

Sami Irsheid, who is threatened with deportation by a lawyer who is a member of Sheikh Jarrah’s neighborhood defense group, told Al Jazeera that Mendelblit’s decision no longer means the case is political.

“The attorney general’s response was brief, in which he said there is no need for his intervention because it is a legal issue,” Irsheid said. “But we will not back down from arguing the case in terms of international law.”

According to Israeli newspaper HaaretzA source close to Mendelblit said the Israeli political leadership supports the decision to stop debating in court on behalf of the state.

Haaretz also reported that officials at Mendelblit’s office said the case of the Sheikh Jarrah families was weak, and that “his legal opinion could not prevent the pending dismissals.”

Relocation of Sheikh Jarrah families

A statement from the Sheikh Jarrah families did not deny Mendelbit’s explanation for his non-intervention, saying that their case is not a legal issue but a mandatory expulsion.

“We affirm that the Israeli occupation government – from its primary scope to all Israeli institutions and activities – seeks to displace residents of the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, thereby perpetuating the established crime in East Jerusalem,” the statement said. he said on social media.

“We also affirm that this crime violates all international conventions and human rights and we affirm that these attempts do not undermine the will to survive in our lands.”

The refusal of the Attorney General to make remarks about Sheikh Jarrah is another empty attempt to mark our expulsions as a “property conflict”.

The facts say the opposite: displacement is a war crime and the Israeli Occupation has no legal jurisdiction under our law. #SaveSheikhJarrah

– Mohammed El-Kurd (@ m7mdkurd) June 7, 2021

Irsheid said the ball is now in the corner of the court.

“It is up to the Supreme Court to decide whether it wants to hear from the Attorney General or whether it is satisfied with the case’s arguments,” he told Al Jazeera.

The court is expected to rule entirely in favor of Israeli settler organizations, but Irsheid said he disagrees with Mendelblit’s decision on the speed of the court’s ruling.

“Ultimately, his decision is a continuation of the same political vision that the state of Israel has taken over the last 20 years, where they have tried to reduce the Sheikh Jarrah affair to a legal dispute between the two sides.” he said.

(Al Jazeera)

According to Al Jazeera correspondent Mohammed Watad, Mendelblit’s stance is also seen as a way for Israel to be exempt from any judicial liability if the Sheikh Jarrah case were to be referred to the International Criminal Court.

“Furthermore, the Israeli government forms a rescue from any international pressure to present the case as a conflict between a group of settlers and a group of Palestinians, and the court ruling was issued after the judicial process was exhausted under Israeli law.

“Avoiding Responsibility”

Israeli rights groups have condemned the attorney general’s decision, saying Peace Now is a “cynical attempt to avoid liability.”

The organization “asked Israel to present its position in public and in court, as it throws families out into the streets using a set of laws that discriminate against Israelis and Palestinians.”

Ir Amim, another Israeli human rights group, said the chief prosecutor’s decision “opens the way for dismissals” and could affect the cases of more than 80 other families threatened with forced relocation.

“There’s still room for policy to intervene,” spokeswoman Amy Cohen said.

The Sheikh Jarrah cause has aroused international attention and aroused worldwide anger. 28 Palestinian families live in the district in 1956, built in 1967 by the UN refugee agency and Jordan, which ruled East Jerusalem until 1967.

Settlers’ organizations filed a lawsuit in 1972, claiming that Sheikh Jarrah’s land belonged to them after calling for an Israeli law that would allow Jews to recover the property of former Jews lost in Israel’s founding in 1948 – a right denied to Palestinians.

The Israeli court’s decision to immediately expel four Palestinian families was postponed in May after Israeli forces violently dispersed them daily using tear gas, sound bombs and rubber bullets after protests and sit-ins.

The escalation escalated after Israeli forces searched the Al-Aqsa mosque complex (the third holiest site for Muslims) several times during the holy month of Ramadan, injuring hundreds of Palestinians.

The attacks prompted armed groups to fire rockets from the Gaza Strip, and Israel responded with an 11-day sustained attack that killed at least 260 Palestinians, including 66 children. On the Israeli side, 12 people including two children were also killed.