Israeli Group Sues UN for Illegal Construction in Jerusalem

Israeli Group Sues UN for Illegal Construction in Jerusalem
Mar 28, 2017
Regavim demands the UN’s illegal construction at its Jerusalem headquarters be dealt with legally.

Regavim on Monday filed a petition in a Jerusalem District Court against the United Nations (UN) for illegal construction at their headquarters, situated in Jerusalem’s Armon Hanatziv UNTSO (Truce Supervision Organization) Compound.

The Armon Hanatziv Compound was built by the British in the 1930s, and the UN was granted the area for use to monitor the ceasefire between Israel and her neighbors after the 1967 Six Day War.

The UN’s illegal construction features the illegal structural changes to the historic building, the illegal construction of a multi-story building at the compound, the construction of an illegal storage facility, and the installation of an illegal petrol station for UN personnel.

It is also unclear if the UN received permission to expand its compound significantly from 44.6 dunam to its current 77.5 dunam.

Regavim is also suing the Jerusalem Municipality and the Israel Lands Authority for allowing the UN to abuse its immunity in this fashion and is demanding “the implementation of Section 212 of the Planning and Building Law, which permits the demolition of a building even if the party responsible for the violations is no longer living or has some form of immunity.”

“Not only are they doing illegal work on an historic building from the 1930s, but they have illegally added office space and put in an illegal gas station,” Regavim stated.

Regavim is a research-based NGO dedicated to ensuring accountable use of Israel’s national land.

“Regavim hopes the court will act against these guests/tenants who seem to think they are the landlords with their illegal activity on Israeli State Lands,” the organization added.

By: United with Israel Staff
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