Live UpdateFrom the Liveblog of Sunday, August 17, 2014
Justice Ministry to hold hearing on B’Tselem national service
The Justice Ministry says Sar-Shalom Jerby, head of the National Service Administration, overstepped his authority when he blacklisted the human rights group B’Tselem and banned it from receiving national service volunteers.
In a letter sent to B’Tselem today, the ministry says it has demanded legal proofs from Jerby, and will hold a hearing on the issue on August 24.
Until then, the human rights group says its current volunteer will complete his year-long service, and the organization has begun interviewing candidates for next year.
Jerby had written that he had revoked the group’s status “in light of the organization’s activities against the State of Israel and IDF soldiers in Israel and abroad.”