First independent rabbinical court established in settlement, extending judiciary into West Bank

A rabbinical court in the Israeli settlement of Ariel in the West Bank is granted official status as an independent court, a spokesperson for the rabbinical courts announces, marking the first time Israel has established a civilian court within the territory and outside Israel’s sovereign borders.

A statement from the rabbinical court system describes the move as “advancing sovereignty in religious services.”

“We came here today to strengthen settlement in the Land of Israel, as the establishment of the first permanent court in Judea and Samaria is a significant step for the approximately half a million [Israeli] residents” of the territory, Sephardic Chief Rabbi David Yosef says, using a biblical term for the West Bank.

Rabbinical courts in Israel are part of the judiciary and enjoy extensive powers, including over divorce, the Jewish status of Israelis, and conversions. The Ariel court had previously operated as a branch of the rabbinical court in Petah Tikva.

It will now be open five days a week, as opposed to two, and serve the approximately 500,000 Israeli settlers residing in the West Bank.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich says the court will “strengthen [our] grip on the land of the Land of Israel.”

Smotrich also serves as a minister in the Defense Ministry with authority over numerous responsibilities of the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) and the Civil Administration, the two Defense Ministry agencies in charge of civilian affairs in Area C of the West Bank, where Israel has full security and civilian control.

Critics say the transfer of civilian authority and services into occupied territory is prohibited under international law and marks a form of creeping annexation.

Earlier, Justice Minister Yariv Levin told settler leader Yossi Dagan that Israel should annex the West Bank.