Israel: Supreme Court overrules entry ban on female student

The Israeli Supreme Court on Thursday overturned the ban on entry into Israeli soil, which targeted an American student for alleged support for a boycott campaign against Israel.

According to the expected decision, the three judges responded to the final appeal of 22-year-old Lara Alqasem, who arrived at Tel Aviv airport on October 2 in possession of a student visa but who was refused entry to Israel.

She will now be able to start a master's degree at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem for which she has been awarded a scholarship from this same institution.

The decision of the Ministry of the Interior prohibiting the entry into the territory "is not reasonable and is revoked", judged the Court.

"The Hebrew University of Jerusalem looks forward to welcoming our new student, Lara Alqasem, who is embarking next week on a master's degree in human rights and transitional justice in our law school," said the university. in a statement reacting to the judgment of the Supreme Court.

The student had a final appeal Sunday, the day she was to be expelled from the immigration center of the airport where she had been detained for two weeks.

A spokeswoman for the immigration authority said Lara Alqasem was released Thursday night.

This is one of the most publicized cases of denial of access to Israeli territory under a controversial law adopted in 2017: it allows to prohibit the entry of supporters of the BDS movement (Boycott, Divestment). , Sanctions) calling for Israel's economic, cultural or scientific boycott to protest the occupation of the Palestinian territories.

Lara Alqasem, whose father is of Palestinian origin, had presided in 2017, during her studies in Florida (South-East of the United States), a branch of the "Students for Justice in Palestine", organization leading campaigns of boycott against Israel. But she said she left the movement afterwards.

"Extreme and dangerous approach"

At a Supreme Court hearing on Wednesday, Lara Alqasem's lawyer said the state should make good sense of law enforcement against BDS campaign supporters.

"Why would she want to come to Israel to call for boycotting?” this country, had questioned his lawyer, Yotam Ben Hillel.

The judgment of the Court went in the same direction.

"In this case, refusing entry does not advance the purpose of the law, and the Hebrew University argues, for example, that this is damaging to the Israeli academic community," says the Court, which criticizes the authorities responsible for 'immigration.

"If that is the case, it is an extreme and dangerous step that could lead to the disintegration of the pillars of democracy in Israel," the judgment added.

Interior Minister Arie Deri has protested against the decision of the Supreme Court.

"The decision to admit the student who is openly acting against the State of Israel is a shame," he denounced on Twitter. "I'll see how to prevent this from happening again."

The student's lawyer, Mr. Ben Hillel, for his part, said he hoped the minister would review his policy.

"Israel has the right to control its borders, but this right does not give the Ministry of the Interior the absolute power to dismiss any person it deems undesirable," he said in a statement. "The case of Lara proves that in democracy we do not watch the thought"

On Friday, a Tel Aviv court rejected the first-instance appeal filed by the young woman against her initial ban on entering Israeli territory.

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where Lara Alqasem wants to study, had criticized the decision of the authorities, stressing that the presence of foreign students allows to breathe oxygen” Israeli settlements and their presence is also a way to counter the boycott campaign.

18/10/2018 21:05:58 –
Jerusalem (AFP) –
© 2018 AFP