Israeli Attorney-General refuses to submit opinion on East Jerusalem evictions court case

Today marks the deadline that Israeli Attorney-General Acivhai Mandelblit was supposed to release an opinion on the court case that would decide whether residents of East Jerusalem neighborhood Sheikh Jarrah will face eviction. 

Jewish settlers are using a law enacted in the 1970s that allows property lost in the 1948 war during Israel’s creation to be reclaimed. The uproar over the case’s hearing, which helped spark the Gaza war and eventually led to over 200 casualties initially caused the case’s decision to be postponed. However, despite a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that has been in place since May 21, the area around the contested neighborhood remains volatile. 

Mandelblit has since refused to appear before the court to present his opinion, meaning the case can be expected to proceed without state intervention, likely in favor of the settlers. Some human rights advocates have voiced concerns that the evictions will be allowed to continue in the near future after international attention from the fighting wanes. The short-term progression of the evictions will be unclear due to the uncertainty surrounding the new Israeli government but the continuation of right-wing power in the Knesset signals further aggressive settlement policy and judicial approval of future eviction cases.