The chief Ashkenazi rabbi of Jerusalem has made an unusual halachic ruling that Israel has an obligation to do everything possible to help free Palestinians who have been imprisoned for selling land to Israelis.
In a letter to Brig. Gen. (res.) Baruch Yedid, head of the Arab Affairs desk at the Zionist movement Im Tirtzu, Rabbi Aryeh Stern wrote that it was as important to free Palestinians jailed for that reason as it was to free imprisoned Jews.
Palestinian law bars selling land to "a hostile state or any of its citizens," and requires the permission of the Palestinian Authority for all land sales in east Jerusalem.
In early October, east Jerusalem resident Issam Akel, 53, was arrested by the Palestinian General Security Service on suspicion that he had sold land to Israelis. In response to Akel's arrest, Israel arrested the governor of the Jerusalem District of the Palestinian Authority, Adnan Ghaith, and another senior Palestinian security official.
Last week, Palestinian real estate agent Ahmad Salameh, suspected by Palestinian authorities of acting as an intermediary in selling West Bank lands to Israelis, was fatally shot on his own doorstep. He was evacuated to Meir Hospital in Kfar Saba, where doctors declared him dead.
"The Gemara [Talmud] and Jewish law have taught us that poor Gentiles need to make a living just like poor Jews, and it must be said that this is the rule according to which Gentile prisoners should be freed just like Jewish prisoners, and it is already known that the commandment to free prisoners is considered a most important one," Stern wrote.
"Efforts must be made to free the abducted [Issam Akel], because he is suspected of selling property to Jews, and anyone who deals with that plays a part in the commandment to settle the land of Israel. Efforts to secure his release will encourage others not to be deterred or refrain from selling land, because they will know that they will be protected from anyone who seeks to harm them."
Yedid welcomed the chief rabbi's letter, saying, "This is a step of historic and national significance, a brave step on the rabbi's part. For the first time, a major figure in the rabbinical institution is intervening on behalf of the Palestinians who have become hunted targets for the PA in the capital.
"We can only hope that words will lead to action and the rest of the authorities in Israel will act in this spirit and put an end to Palestinian lawlessness in Jerusalem. The authorities must provide protection to residents of Israel and demonstrate de facto sovereignty," Yedid wrote.
