The Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that the state may revoke the citizenship of those convicted of terrorism, treason or serious espionage.
The Supreme Court ruling stated that "there was no constitutional fault in an arrangement that would facilitate the revocation of citizenship of a person who committed acts that constitute breach of trust against the State of Israel, such as an act of terrorism, an act of treason or serious espionage, or acquisition of citizenship for permanent residency in a hostile nation or hostile territory".
The ruling came in response to the first two requests of their kind for the denial of citizenship, which were submitted by the interior minister, and concern two terrorists who were convicted and sentenced to long prison terms.
The terrorists Muhammad Mafaraja, who planted an explosive device on a bus in Tel Aviv in 2012 and injured 24 people, and Alaa Ziud, who carried out a stabbing attack at the Gan Shmuel Junction and injured four people in 2015, will now lose their Israeli citizenship.
Finance Minister Avigdor Liberman welcomed the decision, saying that “justice has finally been done. The situation in which terrorists responsible for brutal acts of terrorism hold Israeli citizenship is untenable, and the court did well to stop this absurdity. This is a significant step in eradicating terrorism in the State of Israel.”