Israel strips residency of Palestinian attacker's family

Israel's Interior Minister Aryeh Deri revoked Wednesday the residency status of the family of Fadi al-Qunbar, a Palestinian from East Jerusalem who perpetrated a fatal attack earlier in January.

A statement released by the Interior Ministry said that Deri canceled the residency status of 10 family members of al-Qunbar, including his nephews and mother, Minwa al-Qunbar.

Deri stated that the move was made to "deter terrorists."

The move means the family will have to leave their home in annexed East Jerusalem and will lose their social benefits.

The family was not suspected of helping al-Qunbar in carrying out the attack.

This was the first time the government enacted a new amendment to the Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law. The amendment, approved in 2016, allows the interior minister to revoke residency and staying permits of people who have not committed any offense.

Hamoked, an Israeli human rights group that represents the family, said the move was "draconian" and a violation of the Geneva Convention, which prohibits forcible transfer of residents of an occupied territory.

On Jan. 8, Fadi al-Qunbar, 28-year-old, rammed his truck into a group of soldiers in Jerusalem, killing five and injuring 15 others, before he was shot dead.

The attack came amidst a spate of violence in the West Bank and Israel, which have claimed the lives of at least 249 Palestinians, 40 Israelis, two U.S. nationals, a Jordanian tourist, an Eritrean asylum seeker, and a Sudanese asylum seeker.

Israeli leaders accuse the Palestinian National Authority of "inciting" the unrest, while the Palestinians say it is the result of nearly 50 years of Israeli occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, home to more than five million Palestinians, where they wish to establish their state. Endit