On August 30, 2015,
HaMoked filed two urgent petitions to the High Court of Justice (HCJ) against the military’s decision to demolish the apartment in which lived the assailant in the attack at Alon Shvut junction on November 10, 2014. One petition was filed on behalf of the assailant’s wife and two small children who have no other home, and the other on behalf of eight other families who live in the same building, whose homes and belongings are liable to be damaged by the demolition.
Following the petitions, the HCJ issued a temporary injunction instructing the state not to demolish the apartment pending another court decision.
On September 10, 2015,
the state delivered its response, reiterating its position that exercising the military commander’s power, granted under Regulation 119, to seize and demolish homes is strictly aimed at deterrence. Moreover, the state maintains that “the harm inflicted on additional people who live in the house of the terrorist [...] does not constitute a collective punishment, but is rather an impingement ancillary to the deterring purpose of the exercise of said authority”.
The state claims that given the present security situation and the recent wave of attacks “the fact that the terrorist was indicted, convicted and punished [...] does not constitute, in and of itself, sufficient deterrence against potential perpetrators”. With respect to the neighbors’ petition, the state reasserts that the demolition will be done manually and without damaging constructive elements, so that no damage is anticipated to the areas near the apartment. The military notes that “there is no intention to damage the common wall between the housing unit in which the terrorist lived and the staircase and the apartment located nearby on the same floor”.
The court ruled that the petitions will be heard no later than October 15, 2015. The Temporary Injunction will remain in effect until that date.
