JERUSALEM — An Israeli court froze National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s plan to place crocodiles around Ketziot Prison in southern Israel’s Negev desert, where Palestinian detainees from the Gaza Strip are being held, according to Israeli media on Monday.The Jerusalem District Court issued the order on Sunday following a petition filed by the Let the Animals Live animal welfare group, which requested that crocodiles be reclassified as a protected species, arguing that the government had no authority to move forward with the plan.The group said Environmental Minister Idit Silman had ignored the professional opinions of legal advisers and the Nature and Parks Authority, when he reclassified the Nile crocodile from a protected species to a “tended” wild animal, clearing the way for their introduction to a moat system that is already being dug out around Ketziot Prison in northern Israel.Israeli authorities began digging trenches around a section of the prison housing Palestinians detained from Gaza over allegations of involvement in the Oct. 7, 2023, events. According to a plan by Ben-Gvir, crocodiles will be placed in these trenches.Israel’s public broadcaster KAN reported that the court issued the temporary injunction on Sunday evening, hours after the animal rights organization filed an administrative petition against Silman, Ben-Gvir and the Israel Prison Service, which backed the plan.Judge Avraham Rubin barred authorities from taking any steps based on Silman’s decision to classify crocodiles as “tended wild animals,” a legal designation that would allow them to be transferred and kept at the prison.The temporary order will remain in effect until authorities submit their response to the court, which is expected by mid-August.According to KAN, the dispute centers on Silman’s July 15 decision, which was intended to allow crocodiles to be used as “a deterrent and security measure at prisons.”The petition argues that the move “changes the legal status of crocodiles and the removal of the control and licensing mechanisms imposed on them as protected wild animals.”The broadcaster said Let the Animals Live argued that the Israel Prison Service had already begun infrastructure work, including digging a canal around the prison, adding that the National Security Ministry allocated 21 million shekels (about $6.9 million) for the pilot project.Ben Gvir’s office confirmed that digging for the moat is underway, saying: “Whoever thought this was a gimmick was mistaken.”“The Prison Service is all set. The plan exists in the finest detail, from the maintenance and care of the crocodiles to the crocodiles’ resting cells,” the far-right minister’s office added.The organization noted that the decision was made without sufficient legal authority and ignored professional and legal opinions warning of risks to the animals, the public and the environment, KAN added.Animals Live and the Environmental Justice and Animal Rights Clinic at Tel Aviv University said the court’s order prevents irreversible work from proceeding at this stage and protects the welfare of the animals while they continue efforts to have the plan permanently canceled.Since taking office in late 2022, Ben-Gvir has overseen a tightening of detention conditions for Palestinian prisoners, including policies involving starvation, medical neglect, torture and solitary confinement.About 9,500 Palestinian prisoners, including women and children, are currently held in Israeli prisons under harsh conditions, with dozens reported to have died as a result of starvation, torture and medical neglect, according to Palestinian and Israeli rights organizations.
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