The Supreme Court has rejected a petition by the Regavim Movement and the Binyamin Regional Council seeking immediate enforcement and demolition measures against five large, illegal car scrapyards operating near Highway 4460 between the Palestinian villages of Qibya and Na'alin in the West Bank.
The petition, filed in March, called on the Defense Minister, the IDF Central Command chief and the head of the Civil Administration to take action against the scrapyards. Regavim argued that the compounds are located in Area C, which is under full Israeli control, and pose serious security and safety risks.
According to the petition, thousands of vehicles that have been removed from the road or stolen are brought to the sites. Some are dismantled for spare parts, while others are allegedly repaired and returned to the roads in Judea and Samaria as unauthorized vehicles.
Regavim argued that unregistered vehicles have been used in numerous attacks and claimed that illegal trade in scrap metal and vehicle parts is a major factor contributing to the long-running epidemic of car theft in Israel.
The organization also pointed to enforcement proceedings against one of the scrapyards that have been underway for nearly 20 years, arguing that despite the lengthy legal process, there has been no meaningful change on the ground.
However, a Supreme Court panel accepted the state's position that a series of enforcement measures had been carried out, including the issuance and posting of various orders. The court therefore determined that there was no basis for judicial intervention in the authorities' discretion.
Roi Drucker, director of Regavim's Judea and Samaria division, sharply criticized the ruling. "The car theft epidemic is happening right under the nose of the State of Israel while deliberately taking over state lands. Thousands of stolen vehicles from the central cities pass through every night and are used as a cheap and dangerous source of spare parts and for the rampant use of stolen vehicles on the roads of Judea and Samaria."
"For twenty years, the 'car slaughterhouses' have been operating without interference, and the court accepts the action of posting a decree as 'enforcement actions' and makes a mockery of the law," he said.