| Civil Rights Group Files Petition in High Court of Justice to Compel
Government Not to Transfer Funds to Gaza Banks Shurat HaDin - Israel Law Center Press Contact: Avra Keats Keatsaly@gmail.com(011-972) 54-215-4405 In wake of Israeli decision to transfer NIS 100 million to banks in Gaza,
Shurat HaDin petitions BaGaTz to bar Defense Minister and Governor of the Bank of Israel from moving the funds. The lawsuit demands the immediate end to all forced monetary transfers by Israeli banks to Hamas controlled territory. December, 11 2008 Jerusalem, Israel : The High Court petition filed this
afternoon, which names Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Governor of the Bank of Israel, Stanley Fischer, as respondents, alleges that both the Bank of Israel and the Ministry of Defense are using political pressure to force two Israeli banks, Israel Discount Bank and Bank Hapoalim, to transfer cash to the Hamas run government in the Gaza Strip. Recent reports from Gaza complain that local banks have run out of funds and are unable to replenish cash supplies. Both Israel Discount Bank and Bank Hapoalim announced in October 2007 that they no longer will work with the financial institutions in the Gaza Strip.
Since then, Governor Fischer, a former VP of CitiGroup, and Minister Barak have placed immense political pressure on both banks to continue the transfers. Today's 100 million shekel transfer is the largest sum demanded of them. The petition notes the likelihood that much of the funds will be siphoned
off for use by the terrorist led government in Gaza to continue its attacks
on Israeli civilian targets. It also points to violations of Israeli and
international law providing financial services to banks in Gaza would
entail. In recent years banks in the United States, Canada, Europe and Asia have been sued by terror victims for aiding the terrorist groups by
providing them and charities affiliated with them financial services. "The government might as well be providing truck loads of Qassam rockets instead of cash to Gaza. Fischer and Barak have knowingly allowed for the transfer of 100 million shekels, $25 million to the Hamas run government providing for at least 22,000 terrorist paychecks," said the plaintiff's lawyer Nitsana Darshan-Leitner, Director of the Shurat HaDin Law Center."How is it possible that our government continuously supports those which aim to destroy us?" ### About Shurat HaDin - Israel Law Center: ( www.israellawcenter.org ) is a Tel-Aviv based lawyers' organization that utilizes legal proceedings and lawsuits to fight the scourge of international terrorism. Shurat HaDin aims at obstructing and economically harming the terror organizations, their leaders and their financial patrons on behalf of terror victims. The organization has succesffuly frozen funds of numerous terrorist organizations and is currently in litigation with American Express Bank, Bank of China, and UBS. | 
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