US court denies Israeli suit against Palestinian Authority

A federal court ruled families of Israeli worshippers killed or wounded by PA police can’t sue the PA for damages in US courts.

A federal appeals court ruled families of Israeli worshippers killed or wounded during a 2011 attack in Shechem (Nablus) can’t sue the Palestinian Authority (PA) for damages in US courts.

The decision Friday upheld a lower court ruling to dismiss the case.

The attack by a Palestinian policeman killed Ben Yosef Livnat, an Israeli citizen, and wounded Americans Yitzhak Safra and Natan Safra. The worshippers had come to pray at Joseph’s Tomb without authorization.

The families sued under the federal Anti-terrorism Act, saying the shooting took place at the behest of the PA and was directed at the US.

The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit said there was no evidence the attack targeted the US.

Livnat was the nephew of former Minister Limor Livnat. At his funeral she stated “he was murdered simply because he was Jewish.”

By: AP and World Israel News Staff