HCJ 10650/03 Abu Gwella et. al v

116. The duty of a parent to his children and the prohibition on neglecting them are firmly
established in Israeli Law. For example, Section 15 of the Capacity and Guardianship
Law, 5722 – 1962, whose heading is “functions of parents,” states:
The guardianship of the parent shall include the duty and
the right to take care of the needs of the minor, including his
education, studies, vocational and occupational training and
work, and to preserve, manage and develop his property; it
shall also include the right to the custody of the minor and
to determine his place of residence and the authority to act
on his behalf.
Section 323 of the Penal Law, 5737 – 1977, states:
It is the duty of a parent or person who has responsibility
for a minor, being a member of his household, to provide
the necessaries of life for such minor, to care for his health
and to prevent him being abused or from suffering physical
injury or other harm to his well-being and health, and is
held to have caused any consequences which result to the
life or health of the minor by reason of not fulfilling the said
duty.
See, further, Section 373 of the Penal Law.
117. The Law prevents the parent from acting in accordance with these duties. Thus, the
Law forces the parents into being lawbreakers.. Even worse, the Law thwarts the
primary societal entity to protect the person, life, and dignity of children.
The harm is especially grave in that, along with enactment of the Law, the state
restricts the entry of Israelis into Palestinian population centers in the Gaza Strip and
the West Bank.
The right to equality
118. In revoking the discretion of the Minister of the Interior to arrange the status of
residents’ children born in the Occupied Territories, the Respondents unlawfully
discriminate and do not provide equal treatment to Israeli residents of Arab descent
married to aliens in comparison with other residents of Israel, who live in Israel and
outside its municipal borders. In this context, it should be emphasized that the status of
these persons is not acquired as a result of their arrival and settlement in Israel by free
choice (such as pilgrims, Black Hebrews, and the like). Rather, Israel made them
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