Knesset Extends Yehudah and Shomron Emergency Regulations by Five Years

​​The Knesset plenum on Tuesday passed in second and third readings the bill to extend the validity of emergency regulations in Yehudah and Shomron. Thirty-nine MKs supported the bill in its third and final reading, versus 12 MKs who opposed it.

The bill proposes to extend by five years the validity of the emergency regulations, which deal with the legal powers of the state authorities in Yehudah and Shomron. The explanatory notes to the bill state that the arrangements included in the regulations, which were first enacted in 1967, pertain mainly to the judicial powers of courts in Israel towards Israelis who have committed offenses in the Yehudah and Shomron region or in the Palestinian Authority territories, the powers of the authorities in Israel to carry out in Israel sentences and detentions imposed by the military authorities in the region, and the ability to carry out in the region orders and sentences imposed in Israel on a resident of the region.

“The regulations apply Israeli laws, on a personal basis, to Israelis living in the region, and are also intended to regulate the overall provision of legal assistance between Israel and the authorized elements in the Palestinian Authority,” the explanatory notes state.

On June 30, 2022, the bill for the dissolution of the 24th Knesset was passed. Therefore, in accordance with Section 38 of Basic Law: The Knesset, the validity of the regulations was extended until the end of the first three months of the term of office of the incoming Knesset, that is, until Feb. 15, 2023.

The bill determines that the existence of the regulations is vital for the continuation of the legal relations between Israel and the region and the Palestinian Authority, and therefore, it is proposed to extend their validity by an additional five years, until Feb. 15, 2028.​