| In the Supreme Court sitting as the High Court of Justice |
High Court of Justice 244/23
| Before: | The Honorable President Yitzhak Amit
The Honorable Judge David Mintz The Honorable Judge Yael Willner
|
|
| The petitioners: | 1. The Association for Civil Rights in Israel
2. Ethiopian Jewish Association 3. The Public Committee Against Torture 4. Tabaka Association – Justice and Equality for Ethiopian Immigrants |
|
|
Against
|
||
| Respondent: | Israel Police | |
| Discussion of the objection to making the order nisi to an absolute order | ||
|
Date of Meeting: |
17 Adar 5500Declaratory Judgment – General (March 17, 2025) | |
| On behalf of Petitioners 1-3:
|
Adv. Oded Feller; Adv. Nitzan Ilani; Adv. Shai Ilok | |
| On behalf of Petitioner 4: | Adv. Eyal Abulafia | |
| On behalf of the Respondent: | Adv. Daniel Marks; Adv. Jonathan Sitton | |
| Judgment
|
Judge Yael Willner:
- At the center of the petition before us is the Respondent's procedure (namely the Israel Police; and the following: The Police) in the matter of Its powers according to Section 2 of the Holding and Presentation of an Identity Certificate Law, 5743-1982 (hereinafter: The Identity Card Law or The Law), which states as follows:
Holding and presenting an ID card
- A resident who has reached the age of 16 must always carry an identity card with him and present it to a senior police officer, the head of a local authority, a police officer or a soldier in the performance of their duties, when required to do so.
Background to the Petition
- The background to the petition is the judgment of this court In a High Court of Justice case 4455/19 Tabka Association - Justice and Equality for Ethiopian Jews v. Israel Police [Nevo] (January 25, 2021) (hereinafter: the Matter Tabqa), in which a previous procedure formulated by the police regarding its powers under Section 2 to the Law (hereinafter also: Previous Procedure). It should be noted that the previous procedure was established following the recommendations of an inter-ministerial committee established by the Israeli government to formulate a plan to eradicate racism against Ethiopian immigrants (hereinafter: Palmor Committee). The Palmor Commission's 2016 summary report noted, among other things, that "a significant number of violent incidents began with a demand by the police to identify themselves, when on the face of it there was no clear reason for this demand," and that there is concern that the demand for identification is "currently being activated selectively." In light of the above, the Palmor Commission recommended, inter alia, that the police establish clear procedures that will lead to the equal exercise of its authority to require a person to identify himself. The government adopted the recommendations of the Palmor Committee, and subsequently on March 6, 2019, the police approved the previous procedure (for more information, see: Tabqa, verses 7-8).
- In Petitions on the Matter Tabqa It was argued, in essence, that, contrary to the assumption underlying the previous procedure, Section 2 The law does not authorize police officers to require a person to present an identity card, and in any case does not authorize them to perform additional actions after the document is presented, such as clarifying information about the holder of the ID card in the police information systems.
The Ottoman Settlement [Old Version] 1916The Judgment in the Tabqa Matter