Rights group appeals against Shaked’s deportation order for terrorist’s relatives
Interior minister has ordered seven Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem kicked out over familial ties to man who ran over and killed four soldiers in 2017
Jeremy Sharon is The Times of Israel’s legal affairs and settlements reporter
The HaMoked civil rights organization has filed an appeal to the Jerusalem District Court against the decision of Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked to deport seven Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem because they are relatives of a terrorist.
The organization wrote in its appeal that the Interior Ministry’s justification for the action — that deporting the relatives was a deterrent against terrorism — had no legal basis, adding that deportation would violate their civil rights under Israeli law.
Last month, the appeals tribunal within the ministry rejected a petition against the decision to revoke the residency permits of seven relatives of Fadi al-Qanbar, a terrorist who drove a truck into a group of soldiers on a field trip in Jerusalem and killed four of them in 2017.
The relatives — cousins, nephews, and a woman married to a half-brother of al-Qanbar — are all Palestinians who have short-term stay permits to reside in East Jerusalem since they are married to, or the children of, permanent Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem.
Israel considers East Jerusalem part of its territory, though this is not recognized by the international community. The four would be forced to leave the city to the West Bank if the decision is enforced.
None of the relatives in question are suspected of having any involvement in the terror attack.
Immediately after the attack, then-interior minister and Shas leader Aryeh Deri issued an order revoking the residency permits of several of al-Qanbar’s relatives, with the interior ministry claiming that the family members were connected to the Islamic State terror group.
The appeals tribunal rejected this decision due to the absence of evidence against the relatives, and then rejected a second effort by Deri to revoke their permits on more general claims.
In 2020 Deri tried again, with the ministry arguing that revoking the residency permits of al-Qanbar’s relatives was justified since it would constitute a deterrent for potential terrorists considering whether or not to carry out an attack against Israelis.
Deri also ordered that the temporary residency visas of three other relatives be downgraded to a stay permit.
The appeals tribunal upheld this decision in September this year, prompting Shaked to request that Public Security Minister Omer Bar Lev immediately deport all seven relatives, although they have yet to be expelled.
“Family members cannot be used as a tool to appease public opinion. Innocent people cannot be deported to deter other people from committing attacks,” said Daniel Shenhar, an attorney who is legal director of HaMoked.
“The Qanbar family is being punished for the acts of others, motivated by vengeance and to send a message… This completely cynical use of extended family members who have committed no wrongdoing should have been categorically struck down by the Appeals Tribunal, in light of years of legal precedent of the Supreme Court.”
In her letter to Bar Lev calling on him to deport the relatives, Shaked argued that there was “no legal reason at all for these relatives to reside in Israel,” and said they were illegally residing in Jerusalem following the appeal tribunal’s ruling.
“In this case, it is particularly important to remove them immediately in order to achieve the purpose of the decision and the [appeal’s tribunal] ruling — to deter potential terrorists from committing similar acts,” wrote Shaked.
She added that the current security climate of ongoing Palestinian attacks in the West Bank and East Jerusalem meant the government had to “fight terrorism through all means at our disposal and the time has come to use this tool for the purpose of deterrence.”
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