Israel Justice Clinic · Free Legal Aid for Religious Minorities
Israel is unique in the Middle East as a sanctuary state, where freedom of religion is protected by law. Yet, for minority faith communities, new immigrants, and interfaith families, complex bureaucracy can turn the pursuit of basic civil rights into exhausting legal battles. Your support deploys elite legal advocates to ensure that every citizen and resident, regardless of their religious background, receives equal protection under the law.
Why It Matters
While Israel provides a democratic haven, political power is determined by the populace. If a faith community is too small to secure seats in Israel’s Parliament, its members need dedicated legal counsel to guarantee the fulfillment of their rights. Without JIJ’s expert legal representation:
Unrecognized houses of worship face discriminatory property tax assessments.Interfaith families struggle to secure long term visas and residency.Employees who change their religion risk unlawful termination.At the Jerusalem Institute of Justice, we ensure that dignity is never negotiable.
Your donations fund the legal interventions that keep families whole and protect human dignity:
Pediatric ICU nurse
Rivka, a pediatric ICU nurse, faced threats of unlawful termination from hospital administrators after changing her religion. JIJ attorneys intervened, citing Israel’s Basic Law, which immediately halted the harassment and saved her career. Rivka continues saving the lives of Israeli children today.
“Whoever saves one life saves the world entire”– Mishna Sanhedrin 37a
Chef on the Lebanese border
David, an Israeli chef whose new restaurant opened on the Lebanese border, kept his kitchen open during wartime to feed displaced families and soldiers heading into combat for free. He fell in love with one of his program volunteers and married her in Europe. When immigration clerks blocked her from returning to Israel for the birth of their child, JIJ secured an emergency visa just days before her delivery, keeping the family together.
Refugees from Ethiopia
The Girma Family, refugees from Ethiopia legally residing in Israel for over a decade, faced imminent deportation. JIJ filed an urgent appeal and secured permanent residency, protecting their special-needs child and clearing the path for their eldest to enlist in the IDF.
640
New Israeli citizens welcomed home to their ancestral homeland.
620
Interfaith families reunited through permanent residency.
580
Visas secured for students, workers, and clergy.
19
Refugee families we fought for to secure emergency housing.
Deploy a JIJ attorney to legally shield a family from systemic discrimination and ensure Israel remains a beacon of freedom for all faiths.
22 years, 25 Supreme Court victories
Supported by donor funding, JIJ has secured 25 landmark Supreme Court victories, ensuring equal protection for all faiths:
Houses of worship
When municipal clerks unlawfully restricted property tax exemptions exclusively to orthodox synagogues, JIJ petitioned the Supreme Court and won. This binding precedent protects all minority houses of worship and saves congregations millions of dollars annually.
Tax-exempt status
JIJ successfully challenged a discriminatory Knesset Finance Committee policy that attempted to deny tax-exempt status and donor tax refunds to minority religious organizations, securing hundreds of thousands of dollars in value annually for these communities.
Zoning
Municipal clerks selectively enforced new zoning laws to evict 22 African churches in South Tel Aviv that served as drop-in centers for vulnerable youth. JIJ attorneys halted the evictions, secured a settlement, and guided the churches through code renovations to keep their doors open.
Citizenship
When a Swedish citizen and daughter of a Holocaust survivor was denied immigration to Israel due to her interfaith upbringing, JIJ took the fight to the Supreme Court. The victory secured her full Israeli citizenship.
Deploy our legal team to secure the next systemic precedent.
