BBH Law submitted a petition to the Ministry of Interior’s Population and Immigration Authority demanding that the Ministry process applications for Israeli citizenship also for East Jerusalem Palestinians within a fixed time frame and develop a written policy on the matter available to the public.
The vast majority of East Jerusalem Palestinians are not Israeli citizens but rather holders of permanent residency – a status generally granted to immigrants and one that is relatively easy for the government to revoke. In the late 2000s, the East Jerusalem Branch of the Ministry of Interior initiated a campaign of mass revocations. In an effort to protect themselves from the risk of revocation, many residents of East Jerusalem began petitioning the Ministry of Interior for citizenship.
From information provided by the Ministry of Interior to the newspaper “Times of Israel,” it appears that beginning in 2014, almost no applications for citizenship (or naturalization) were approved. From the 800+ applications filed each year since 2014, only 10-50 applications were approved each year. The evidence indicates a sharp decrease in the number of approved applications as compared to previous years.
In a phone call with the director of the Citizenship Department of the East Jerusalem Branch of the Ministry of Interior, BBH Law learned that the East Jerusalem Branch is currently processing applications filed in 2014 and that at present, it takes approximately three years to receive a response. In addition, BBH Law was told that East Jerusalem permanent residents who approach the Ministry of Interior with their interest in citizenship receive appointments to file their applications approximately 8-9 months after their initial inquiry.
Such foot-dragging by the Population and Immigration Authority is deplorable. Israel’s High Court of Justice has long held that government bodies must act with reasonableness, which in this context means working within a reasonable timetable. Even if the reason behind the delays in processing citizenship applications derives from heavy workloads, such grounds do not justify such extensive delays.
When arguments are made against revoking the residency of East Jerusalem Palestinians, Israel argues again and again, including in international fora, that East Jerusalemites can always apply for citizenship. The Ministry of Interior’s current policy, in which applications for naturalization are almost entirely being neglected, brings such arguments into question.
BBH Law handles applications for citizenship made by East Jerusalem permanent residents. As part of our representation, BBH Law demands that the Ministry of Interior establish clear guidelines and timetables for the handling of naturalization applications, similar to the timetables established for processing of other applications by the Ministry of Interior.