Supreme Court: Process of Palestinian prisoners' release lacking
Justice Elyakim Rubinstein says government's decision to publish list of Palestinian prisoners slated for release only 48 ahead of time lacking, orders State to present court with supportive arguments within 21 days
Supreme Court Justice Elyakim Rubinstein criticized the procedures which preceded the latest release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israel.
Earlier Monday, Israel released
227 Palestinian prisoners as a goodwill gesture to
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, for Eid al-Adha, the Muslim Festival of Sacrifice.
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The move was challenged by the legal center for terror research and the Gush Etzion Regional Council, which filed a petition aimed at halting it.
Rubinstein eventually denied the petition, but noted in his ruling that the government's decision to make the prisoners' list public a mere 48 hours prior to their release, did not allow for proper examination.
Despite having quashed the petition, thus essentially validating the State's position – which argued that the court should not interfere in matters of state the likes of prisoners' release – Rubinstein still ordered the State to present the court with supportive arguments as to the rationale of the process, which he noted to be lacking, within 21 days.
He further noted that the State failed to properly answer the petitioners' questions regarding the danger assessment of some of the prisoners.
Rubinstein reiterated the need for due process in petitions of this kind, saying that "despite the fact that the court had already ruled against some of the arguments mentioned in the petition, some issues should be revisited when the reality calls for it."
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