The Humanitarian Committee was established in 2007 – under an amendment to the
Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law (Temporary Order) – with the power to advise the Minister of Interior to grant Israeli stay permits or temporary residency status in exceptional humanitarian circumstances. This, given the freeze Israel has imposed since 2003 on family unification of East Jerusalem residents and their spouses from the OPT. The humanitarian committee was intended to respond to cases of spouses from the OPT who require Israeli status due to their dire circumstances or in order to care for immediate relatives who are Israeli residents, or other humanitarian circumstances.
Although it is authorized to do so, the committee only rarely recommends granting temporary status (A/5 visa) and usually
only following a court petition. This is demonstrated by
past data as well as by recent data HaMoked has received in response to its freedom-of-information request.
According to the Ministry of Interior response of December 2, 2019, in 2018 the committee received 132 requests for temporary residency status, and approved 14 requests (not necessarily those submitted that year); in 2019 (until November), 192 such requests were submitted and 12 approved.
