Love of the Land: Shurat HaDin: Court Rules Victims' Suits Against Islamic Terror Groups Can Proceed

Shurat HaDin: Court Rules Victims' Suits Against Islamic Terror Groups Can Proceed

IMRA
17 January '10

"Hamas and Islamic Jihad can be Served Court Papers
on their Known Activists"

For many years Shurat HaDin-Israel Law Center has been urging the
victims of terrorist attacks to bring lawsuits against those who
devastated their lives and those of their families. Yet, how does an
attorney actually go about serving court papers on a terrorist
organization as the law requires to commence a civil action? One cannot
very well travel into the Gaza Strip to hand Hamas the papers. Its far
too dangerous to enter Jenin, where Fatah's bomb factories are located
and try to catch them at work. Moreover, there are not many process
servers willing to deliver a complaint to Hezbullah for us in South
Lebanon.

This past week, in an unprecedented decision, the Jerusalem District
Court has ruled that lawsuits brought against the terrorist groups could
be served on the "above ground" individuals affiliated with these
underground terror groups. The opinion over turned the decision of a
lower court, which had refused to allow the victims to serve process on
Hamas and Islamic Jihad through well-known activists affiliated with the
Islamic terror groups.

In reversing the lower court, the judge found that a terror organization
is in many ways similar to a "corporation," as defined by the Israeli
law and as such it is similarly subject to legal process through its de
facto "representatives."

The ruling involved two lawsuits filed against Hamas and Islamic Jihad
on behalf of victims of terror attacks and our efforts to serve the
complaints on the Islamic terrorists by delivering them to the
well-known activists of the groups. The first lawsuit was brought on
behalf of the Weinstein family, who lost their son Adam, in a suicide
bombing on Ben Yehuda Street in Jerusalem in December 2001. We filed
against Hamas and delivered the papers to Khaled Abu Arfa, the so-called
Minister for Jerusalem Affairs from the Hamas government in Gaza, who
(rather insanely) lives in East Jerusalem.

(Read full release)

Love of the Land: Shurat HaDin: Court Rules Victims' Suits Against Islamic Terror Groups Can Proceed