Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked announced Wednesday that she ordered the expulsion of seven relatives of Jerusalem terrorist Fadi al-Qandar, killer of four IDF soldiers in a 2017 ramming attack in Armon Hanatziv.
Residency Status Yanked from Jerusalem Terrorist’s Relatives
Sixteen other soldiers were wounded, including several who were seriously injured, in the attack.
Al-Qandar’s relatives are not Israeli citizens, although they did hold Jerusalem residency permits. It is not known whether they hold any other citizenship.
Shaked was authorized to deport 17 relatives of the terrorist following a ruling last week by the Jerusalem Court of Appeals supporting her order to revoke the residency status of seven of the relatives. It is not clear why she focused on just seven of the family members.
She sent a letter to Public Security Minister Omer Barlev, asking him to carry out the expulsions. “The time has come to use this tool for deterrence,” she said in a statement.
In response, Barlev said police would assist with the deportation after the family was first informed of its pending expulsion by the Interior Ministry’s Population, Immigration and Border Authority.
The relatives were given seven days to organize their affairs and prepare to leave the country by Oct. 6. If they failed to leave by that time, Barlev said Israel Police would act to “execute the ruling in accordance with legal provisions, list of priorities and operational needs.”
