Zionist Attorney General ‘Will Not Intervene’ in Sheikh Jarrah Case

By Staff, Agencies

The Zionist entity’s so-called attorney general informed the Supreme Court that he will not intervene in the legal proceedings of a high-profile Sheikh Jarrah case in which four Palestinian families in occupied East al-Quds are facing imminent forced expulsion from their homes in favor of Zionist occupation settlement organizations.

In a statement issued on Monday, Avichai Mendelblit said “there is no place” for him to intervene in the proceedings.

Last month, the Supreme Court gave the attorney general until June 8 to submit his legal opinion on the case.

In a letter sent to the court, Mendelblit wrote that in light of the numerous legal procedures that had been conducted regarding the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood over the years, he concluded that there was no need for him to appear in court.

The attorney general’s decision leaves the Supreme Court free to decide whether to hear the four Palestinian families’ appeal of two lower court verdicts that they must leave their homes.

The four families are part of a group of more than 500 Palestinians – comprising 28 families – facing forced expulsion from the neighborhood.

“The attorney general’s response was brief, where he said he feels there is no need for his intervention since this is a legal issue,” Sami Irsheid, a lawyer who is part of the defense team for the Sheikh Jarrah residents threatened with forced expulsion said. “But we will not back down from arguing the case from the international law aspect either.”

According to ‘Israeli’ daily Haaretz, a source close to Mendelblit said that the Zionist political leadership supports his decision to refrain from arguing before the court on behalf of the regime.

Haaretz also reported that officials in Mendelblit’s office said the case of the Sheikh Jarrah families is weak, and that “his legal opinion would not be able to prevent their pending eviction.”

A statement by the Sheikh Jarrah families rejected Mendelbit’s explanation of his non-intervention, saying their case is not a legal matter but one of forced expulsion.

“We affirm that the ‘Israeli’ occupation government – across its entire spectrum from the prime minister to all ‘Israeli’ institutions and activities – is seeking to displace the residents of Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, thus perpetuating the crime of ‘Israeli’ settlement in East al-Quds,” the statement published on social media said.