Shtarkes to Appeal to House of Lords Against Extradition to Israel

The Divisional Court here, presided over by Lord Parker of Waddington, Lord Chief Justice of England, today upheld the right of the Government of Israel to demand the extradition of Shalom Shtarkes, 22-year-old Israeli religious teacher. The latter, held in a London prison without bail since last August, is charged with having kidnapped his nephew, 10-year-old Yossele Shumacher, because Yossele’s parents feared the child would not receive an education sufficiently based in traditional Orthodoxy.

The case came before the court on an application by Shtarkes’ defense for a writ of habeas corpus, claiming that Israel had no Jurisdiction over Jerusalem, where the crime is alleged to have occurred. Lord Parker was joined on the bench by two Queen’s Bench judges, Sir John Ashworth and Sir Fenton Atkinson. The court’s verdict, rejecting the habeas corpus application, was unanimous.

Rejecting an application for bail for S.htarkes, the court remanded the young teacher back to Briton Prison, permitting the defense to appeal the case to the House of Lords. However, the court stated it would grant an application for an early hearing before the House of Lords, so that Shtarkes would not be imprisoned any longer than necessary.

The court ruled that Israel was the de facto power that has jurisdiction over Jerusalem, holding that, to exclude Jerusalem from the right to demand extradition would render the Anglo-Israeli extradition treaty ineffective “and lead to an absurd situation.” Yossele’s grandfather, elderly Nachman Shtarkes, is in jail in Israel, having refused to reveal the boy’s whereabouts.