HCJ 10650/03 Abu Gwella et. al v

6. The refusal of the Respondents to grant a status in Israel to Petitioners 2-5 and to other
children in their situation causes grave and immediate effect on their lives. The
Respondents are forcing the separation of children and their parents, or, in the
alternative, sentencing the children to live in the country without any status and
identity.
7. Because she is not recorded in her mother’s identity card, the 14-year-old child,
Petitioner 2, has already encountered problems at checkpoints set up in East
Jerusalem. When she accompanies her mother shopping outside the neighborhood or
on a family visit, more than once soldiers delayed her for a prolonged period of time,
demanded that she return home, and even threatened that she would be deported to the
West Bank. She does not take part in school activities outside the neighborhood.
Recently, Petitioner 3, who is 13 years old, was returned to his home and forbidden to
go with others in his class on a class trip, because he was unable to show a birth
certificate to the soldiers at the checkpoint. 1
Why the petition to the High Court of Justice was filed
8. The petition filed to this Honorable Court deals with a subject that dictates the fate of
many children and, as result, of their parents who are residents of Israel. Also, part of
the relief requested in the petition is the nullification of part of the Nationality and
Entry into Israel Law; thus, it is appropriate for the High Court of Justice to hear the
matter.
9. Furthermore, as will be described at length below, following the government’s
decision, the Petitioners (in the present petition) filed a similar petition to the Court for
Administrative Matters in Jerusalem – Adm. Pet. 952/03, Abu Gwella et al. v. Minister
of the Interior et al. Following the decision of the Honorable Court for Administrative
Matters to stay the proceedings on the petition, the Petitioners requested that it be
dismissed. The Petitioners should mention that the said court issued a brief decision on
the stay of proceedings on the petition, without stating the reasons for the decision.
The facts
The factual background on which the Petitioners base their contentions is as follows:
1
A birth certificate is a mark of identity, showing that the child received a status in Israel and
is registered in the identity card of his resident parent. Children whose status is not arranged
are not entitled to a birth certificate, and the parents are given a Notice of Birth (which is also
the case when the child is born in Israel).
5