The Samaria Regional Council filed an urgent petition with the High Court of Justice, through Attorney Adi Klein, Attorney Amichai Weinberger, and Attorney Eyal Bukobza of the Weinberger Bertenthal & Co. law firm, against the Prime Minister, the Minister of Defense, the Minister of Finance, and the Minister of Education, demanding that the failure be removed - and that a budget be transferred to protect the buses for the region's students.
The Samaria Council explains that government ministries require students to be transported in bullet-proof vehicles in accordance with Central Command procedures and a circular from the Director General of the Ministry of Education, but at the same time, the Ministry of Defense does not approve an appropriate budget for protecting the required transportation vehicles.
In the petition, the council clarifies that there is a shortage of approximately 44 bulletproof buses and 47 minibuses in the area. The shortage leads to students being forced to travel in unprotected vehicles or alternatively arriving at least an hour late for the start of the school day, due to the shortage of buses and the need for multiple bus rounds in the morning, contrary to the Ministry of Education's guidelines. This situation harms the school routine and the quality of education and creates mental anguish for parents and students.
The petition emphasizes that on the one hand, the IDF, the defense establishment, and the Ministry of Defense are legally required and obligated to bring the required protective suits.
On the other hand, the Ministries of Finance and Defense are not budgeting what is required. Thus, the Ministry of Education requires the Samaria Council to comply with the procedures of the Central Command and the Ministry of Defense. On the other hand, the Ministry of Finance does not require it. This causes delays in some places, and cases have been described in which buses with students "got stuck" in dangerous areas without protection, which necessitated calling in military forces to rescue them.".
The Samaria Regional Council emphasizes that they have reached a situation where they are forced to submit a petition with no choice:
""Samaria Council Chairman Yossi Dagan has held working meetings on the subject with all the relevant ministers and professionals over the past year. We have reached the point of submitting a petition with great regret, and not willingly - because we respect all the valuable entities we work with. We were forced to petition the court, because the students of Samaria come before all else.".
In the petition, the council asks the Supreme Court to order the respondents to approve without delay the protection budget for student transportation in 2024. "Every passing day endangers the lives of Samaria students - literally," the petition states.
Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria Council: "All the parties and people are good with good intentions and have expressed a good will to resolve the issue. However, the issue has not been resolved and after almost a year of meetings and open dialogue, there is no real prospect of closing this gap in protection and we have no choice,
""It is our duty to ensure the safety and quality of education of our dear Samaritan students – and this will always be our top priority. The current situation not only jeopardizes their safety, but also harms the students.".
""The impermeability - which on the one hand requires gunfire protection in a large part of Samaria, and on the other hand does not provide the budget for the required protection envelopes. leads to the fact that in a large part of our high schools we are forced to start studying at nine in the morning, contrary to the rules of the Ministry of Education, and at the risk of life. We will not accept any harm to the students of Samaria, which is also an injury to the dignity of the settlement. We are not second-class citizens in the country, and we will fight until there is a solution, as is done in every other region in the State of Israel.".
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