'Intent to Regularise': The Israeli Supreme Court and the Normalisation of Emergency

Abstract

Emergency doctrine typically occupied a central space in the legal system of the colony, operating as a bridge between what James Fitzjames Stephen in India presented as the twin imperial pillars of conquest and justice. Its exceptionality and malleability facilitated the forcible imposition of sovereign control, while its legality provided the necessary seal of legitimacy. A formal state of emergency (upon which some but not all layers of Israel’s emergency jurisprudence are contingent) was proclaimed within days of the birth of the state of Israel and has persisted without interruption since 19 May 1948. This short essay provides an overview of the structure of Israel’s emergency legalities and discusses a 2012 Supreme Court decision upholding the long-standing state of emergency.

Keywords: state of emergency, Israel, Palestine, Israeli Supreme Court

JEL Classification: K33