Marchers may traverse Arab East Jerusalem next week, court rules

The High Court of Justice rejects an appeal seeking to prevent the annual march of the flags expected to take place on Jerusalem Day, next Sunday, from traversing the Arab part of Jerusalem.

Two NGOs, Ir Amim and Tag Meir, sought to prevent the march after it became in recent years a forceful display of extremist right wing groups, including incidents of violence between Jews and Arabs and overt displays of anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian racism.

The court rejected the two NGOs’ appeal but demanded that police arrest and serve indictments against any person or persons behaving violently or making racist remarks.

Justices also demanded that the rabbis leading the march call on marchers to avoid any display of violence. The NGOs remarked that in the past few years the march became violent when it passed through the eastern part of Jerusalem near the Old City’s Muslim Quarter.