Let Hamas Pay Israeli Court Fees

A breathless AP “exclusive” says the families of Palestinians killed by the IDF are being railroaded out of justice by steep Israeli court fees.

Here’s how the bureaucratic tyranny works against Palestinian claims for wrongful death compensation:

“The victim must pay for justice,” said Gaza resident Mohammed Abdel-Dayim, whose son and three nephews were killed during a military assault. “Israel should be ashamed.”

Israel says the fees prevent frivolous lawsuits. They say they are imposed on many foreigners – not just Palestinians – because they don’t have local assets that the state could seize to cover legal fees and other court costs.

But Palestinians say the costs are part of a strategy to protect Israeli soldiers. If the fees aren’t reduced, lawyers representing Palestinians say they will have to drop most cases.

Collateral damage is regrettable, but if these families need cash to pursue legal claims in Israeli courts, they should simply turn to Hamas.

1. Many of the 1,000 claims that AP reports stem from Operation Cast Lead. Hamas and other terror organizations embeded their gunmen, rocket squads, weapons labs and arms dumps in civilian areas, which made civilian casualties inevitable. See, for example, this eye-opening post-war expose in Der Spiegel.
2. And anyway, Hamas maintains that any Palestinian killed by the IDF is a martyr, and doles out cash to their families.

So if Gazas want to pursue legal action against the courts of the country their leaders want to destroy, that’s fine with me. The Israeli legal system’s tranparent enough.

Hamas can bankroll the court fees.

(Image via Flickr/srqpix)