Pro-Palestinian group seeks ban on Israeli real estate fair in Paris

Pro-Palestinian activists have asked a French court to ban an Israeli real estate fair in Paris marketing Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, AFP reported on Thursday. The Franco-Palestinian NIDAL association filed an emergency motion with a court against the 9th Icube real estate and investment salon, arguing that the fair violates human rights. The event is scheduled for Sunday at the European Centre for Judaism in the French capital. Other major cities have seen similar uproars over Israeli real estate fairs. NIDAL asked the court to either order the head of the Paris police force to ban the event outright or to ensure that the event does not sell property in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, whose occupation by Israel since 1967 is considered illegal under international law. Before taking legal action, the group said they had sent a letter to the Paris police on 5 November, which went unanswered. In the filing, seen by AFP, the rights group says that marketing Israeli settlements in the occupied territories contributes to the forced displacement of the Palestinian people through population transfer - a practice prohibited by international law and classified as a war crime under the French penal code. In particular, the activists highlighted that BH Nadlan, a company that markets settlements in both East Jerusalem and the West Bank on its website, will be present at the fair. They also pointed to the fair's official guide's offer of a "significant" financial "bonus" for newcomers settling in "Judea and Samaria", the Israeli term for the occupied West Bank.