Fifty-one Conservative, Reform, and Orthodox rabbis submitted a signed manifesto Sunday rejecting a ban by Tel Aviv rabbis on renting homes to illegal aliens.
Signatories of the manifesto, all of whom belong to the Rabbis for Human Rights group, claim that such a prohibition "does not correspond to Jewish and human values".
"As a people familiar with being refugees, oppression and deportation, we reject this prohibition, which recalls to memory a dark time in the history of our people," the manifesto says.
"The prohibition has its roots in fear and an attempt to create panic in light of the increasing foreign population in the city. The rabbis who signed the prohibition on renting homes to foreigners are wrong, and misleading the public."
The human rights group added that such a prohibition was inconceivable in a "country that calls itself democratic".
Court for illegal aliens approved
Meanwhile the Ministerial Committee for Legislation approved on Sunday a bill by Justice Minister Yaakov Ne'eman for the establishment of a court for illegal residents.
The court will provide a preliminary step for hearings on various issues related to illegal aliens residing in Israel, as well as a source of critique for the Immigration Authority and other authorities that handle these issues.
Another goal will be to relieve stress from administrative courts, which currently handle all cases on illegal aliens, as well as lighten the workload of both the State Prosecutor's Office and the Interior Ministry.