Egypt's border with Israel
Photo: Reuters
Egypt to revoke citizenship of men wedded to Israelis
Supreme Court in Egypt rules in favor of petition seeking to strip Egyptian citizenship of man who married woman from Israel. Lawyer: Importance of case is in creating separation fence between Egyptian and Israeli youth
Egypt's supreme administrative court, which is the court of last appeal, upheld a ruling Saturday of a lower court stipulating that Egyptian men married to Jewish Israeli women will be stripped of their citizenship. In doing so, the court rejected an appeal submitted by the Egyptian Interior Ministry on the matter.
In its ruling, the court established that there is a difference between a marriage to an Arab citizen of Israel and a Jewish citizen of Israel. The ruling does not apply to men married to Arab citizens of Israel because, according to the upheld lower court's ruling, "the Arabs of 1948 living within the Green Line are Palestinians living under Israeli occupation."
According the supreme court's ruling, "Marriage to Israeli Jewish women is fundamentally different than marriage to the daughters of the 1948 Arabs, who live under occupation."
This grave ruling was made in the midst of a problematic sentiment towards Israel on the Egyptian street. It is not inconceivable that the flotilla raid contributed to the case's outcome.
However, even though the ruling cannot be appealed, this is not necessarily the final word. The court ruled that stripping one of his citizenship will not be done automatically, and will require that the Interior Ministry present the Egyptian government with the particular circumstances of each individual case before it is decided on.
"This ruling is in Egypt's favor, which has history and culture, and protects Egyptian youth and national security," effused Attorney Nabil al-Wahsh, who submitted the appeal.
Wahsh said, "The importance of this ruling is in creating a separation fence between Egyptian and Israeli youth, especially during a period when Israel continues to attack the peace-lovers in the world, such as in the recent attack on the aid boat from the peace flotilla en route to the besieged residents of Gaza."
