A document prepared by the Land of Israel Legal Forum submitted to the state attorney general’s office has led to the establishment of a committee that will probe allegations of selective law enforcement pertaining to illegal construction. Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein has ordered a probe into allegations that the government is foot-dragging when it comes to razing illegal homes in the Arab sector, the eastern capital, while enforcement in the Jewish sector remains rigid.

In a session of the Knesset Interior Committee on January 9, 2012, city official Ofir May reported in all of 2011, 8 illegal homes in the eastern capital were razed as compared to 67 in western areas of the capital. Paradoxically, 1,166 violations for illegal construction in the Arab sector were filed in 2011 as compared to 1,134 in the Jewish (western) sector of the capital.

City officials point out that one of the major hurdles preventing demolition of illegal structures is the lack of police cooperation, explaining city inspectors cannot carry out demolition orders without a significant police presence.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)