40-501: A kapo was a privileged prisoner who served as a barracks supervisor/warder or led work details in a Nazi concentration camp. Kapo or KAPO may also refer to one of the following: Kapo A kapo ( German : Kapo ) was one of prisoner functionaries ( German : Funktionshäftlinge ), a prisoner in a Nazi camp who was assigned by the SS guards to supervise forced labor or carry out administrative tasks. After World War II,
80-628: A judge, or is removed from office. As of October 2024 , the Supreme Court judges are: Yitzhak Amit (1958, Israel) Noam Sohlberg (1962, Israel) Daphne Barak-Erez (1965, United States ) David Mintz (1959, UK ) Yosef Elron (1955, Israel) Yael Willner (1959, Israel) Ofer Grosskopf (1969, Israel) Alex Stein (1957, USSR , now Moldova ) (1958, Israel) (1958, Israel) (1962, Israel) (1961, Israel) Keren Azulay and Lior Mishaly Shlomai serve as
120-470: A judgment or decision of the Magistrates’ Courts. The Supreme Court sits as a panel of five Judges or more in a rehearing on a matter in which the Supreme Court sat with a panel of three Judges. The Supreme Court may sit as a panel of a larger uneven number of Judges than three in matters that involve fundamental legal questions and constitutional issues of particular importance. In a case on which
160-657: A majority of 7 of the 9 committee members, or two less than the number present at the meeting. All candidates for appointment to the Supreme Court must have a minimum of five years of experience as a district court judge or otherwise at least ten years of professional legal experience including a minimum of five years practicing law in Israel. These requirements may be waived for a person recognized as an "eminent jurist", although this special category has only been used once for an appointment. The three organs of state—the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government—as well as
200-591: A mandatory death sentence. During this second phase (February 1952 – 1957), the Israeli Supreme Court overturned Jungster’s sentence and essentially ruled that while Nazis could be charged with crimes against humanity and war crimes , their former collaborators could not. While prosecutions of kapos continued, doubts emerged amongst some of those in the public sphere as to whether the trials should continue at all. The official view remained that kapos had been Jewish collaborators, not Nazis themselves. By 1958, when
240-514: A ruling of the Court justifies such hearing. The Supreme Court, both as an appellate court and the High Court of Justice, is normally constituted of a panel of three Judges. A single Supreme Court Judge may rule on interim orders, temporary orders or petitions for an order nisi , and on appeals on interim rulings of District Courts, or on judgments given by a single District Court judge on appeal, and on
280-636: A searchable online database at Versa . They can also be found on the Court's own site and have been published in hard copy in annual volumes by William S. Hein & Co. as the Israel Law Reports . In addition, the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in cooperation with the Court, has published three volumes of English translations of selected decisions entitled Judgments of the Israel Supreme Court: Fighting Terrorism within
320-409: A slur in the twenty-first century, particularly for Jews deemed insufficiently supportive of Israel or Zionism . In 2017, David Friedman , soon to become US ambassador to Israel , apologized for referring to supporters of the J Street advocacy group as "far worse than kapos". While there is a popular perception that all Kapos were Jews, this is not so. Kapos were of various nationalities found in
360-437: A “further hearing” on its own judgment. In a matter on which the Supreme Court has ruled, whether as a court of appeals or as the High Court of Justice, with a panel of three or more Judges, it may rule at a further hearing with a panel of a larger number of Judges. A further hearing may be held if the Supreme Court makes a ruling inconsistent with a previous ruling or if the Court deems that the importance, difficulty or novelty of
400-580: Is a lead opinion for the majority, but there is no "opinion of the Court" as such. Each participating Judge will either note that she or he concurs in the lead opinion (and possibly another opinion as well) or write a separate concurrence. It is not unusual for most or all of the participating Judges to write separately, even when they agree as to the outcome. The Court's opinions are available in Hebrew on its own website and from Nevo . A relatively small subset has been translated into English. These are available in
440-574: Is determined by a resolution of the Knesset. Currently, there are 13 Supreme Court Judges with 2 vacant places. At the head of the Supreme Court and at the head of the judicial system as a whole is the President of the Supreme Court, and the Deputy President. A judge serves until reaching 70 years of age, or the judge resigns, dies, is appointed to a position which is disqualifying from continued service as
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#1732845383761480-626: Is situated in Jerusalem 's Givat Ram governmental campus, about half a kilometer from Israel's legislature, the Knesset . When ruling as the High Court of Justice ( Hebrew : בֵּית מִשְׁפָּט גָּבוֹהַּ לְצֶדֶק , Beit Mishpat Gavo'ah LeTzedek ; also known as its acronym Bagatz , בג"ץ), the court rules on the legality of decisions of State authorities: government decisions, those of local authorities and other bodies and persons performing public functions under
520-633: Is that it is an abbreviation of "Kameradschaftspolizei". Many kapos were subject to reprisals, including mass lynchings , immediately upon the liberation of concentration camps. For example, thousands of prisoners had been transferred from the Mittelbau-Dora camp to the Bergen-Belsen camp in April 1945. While not in good health, these prisoners were in far better condition than those in Bergen-Belsen. Upon
560-765: The Israel National Opera , was tried for having turned Jews over to the Nazis as head of the Jewish Ghetto Police in the Bendzin ghetto in Poland. Having arrived in Israel in 1958–9, Barenblat was arrested after a ghetto survivor recognised him while he was conducting an opera. Found guilty of helping the Nazis by ensuring that Jews selected for the death camps did not escape, Barenblat was sentenced to five years in prison. On 1 May 1964, after having served three months, Barenblat
600-691: The President of Israel , upon nomination by the Judicial Selection Committee . Once appointed, Judges serve until retirement at the age of 70 unless they resign or are removed from office. Yitzhak Amit became the acting President of the Supreme Court of Israel on 1 October 2024 after Vogelman stepped down, until a permanent president is appointed by the Judicial Selection Committee, which may take place sometime in November. The Court
640-469: The Bar Association. As the High Court of Justice ( Hebrew : בית משפט גבוה לצדק , Beit Mishpat Gavo'ah LeTzedek ; also known as its acronym Bagatz , בג"ץ), the Supreme Court rules on matters within its original jurisdiction , primarily regarding the legality of decisions of State authorities: Government decisions, those of local authorities and other bodies and persons performing public functions under
680-563: The Court Magistrate Judges (or "Registrars"). Below is a list of presidents of the Supreme Court. As an appellate court , the Supreme Court considers cases on appeal (criminal, civil, and military ) on judgments and other decisions of the District Courts. It also considers appeals on judicial and quasi-judicial decisions of various kinds, such as matters relating to the legality of Knesset elections and disciplinary rulings of
720-782: The Judicial Selection Committee—at the proposal of the Minister of Justice or the President of the Supreme Court—with the agreement of seven of its nine members. The following are qualified to be appointed Judge of the Supreme Court: a person who has held office as a judge of a District Court for a period of five years, or a person who is inscribed, or entitled to be inscribed, in the roll of advocates, and has for not less than ten years –continuously or intermittently, and of which five years at least in Israel – been engaged in
760-568: The Law . These are part of the Versa database and also can be found online at the MFA's website . In the 1980s and the 1990s, the Supreme Court established its role as a protector of human rights, intervening to secure freedom of speech and freedom to demonstrate, reduce military censorship, limit the use of certain military methods and promote equality between various sectors of the population. However critics question
800-547: The President of the Supreme Court sits, the President is the Presiding Judge; in a case on which the Deputy President sits and the President does not sit, the Deputy President is the Presiding Judge; in any other case, the Judge with the greatest length of service is the Presiding Judge. The length of service, for this purpose, is calculated from the date of the appointment of the Judge to the Supreme Court. A special power, unique to
840-448: The Supreme Court, is the power to order a retrial on a criminal matter in which the defendant has been convicted by a final judgment . A ruling to hold a retrial may be made where the Court finds that evidence provided in the case was based upon lies or was forged; where new facts or evidence are discovered that are likely to alter the decision in the case in favor of the accused; where another has meanwhile been convicted of carrying out
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#1732845383761880-448: The bar association are represented in the Judges' Nominations Committee. Thus, the shaping of the judicial body, through the manner of judicial appointment, is carried out by all the authorities together. Supreme Court Judges cannot be removed from office except by a decision of the Court of Discipline, consisting of judges appointed by the President of the Supreme Court, or upon a decision of
920-626: The bill in an 8-7 decision. Supreme Court Judges are appointed by the President of Israel, from names submitted by the Judicial Selection Committee , which is composed of nine members: three Supreme Court Judges (including the President of the Supreme Court), two cabinet ministers (one of them being the Minister of Justice ), two Knesset members, and two representatives of the Israel Bar Association . Appointing Supreme Court Judges requires
960-469: The camp's liberation on 15 April 1945, these prisoners attacked their former overseers. Overall, roughly 170 Kapos were lynched. During the 1946-47 Stutthof trials in Gdańsk , Poland , in which Stutthof concentration camp personnel were prosecuted, five kapos were found to have used extreme brutality and were sentenced to death . Four of them were executed on 4 July 1946, and one on 10 October 1947. Another
1000-539: The concentration camps. Supreme Court of Israel The Supreme Court of Israel ( Hebrew : בֵּית הַמִּשְׁפָּט הָעֶלְיוֹן , romanized : Bet HaMishpat HaElyon , Hebrew acronym Bagatz ; Arabic : المحكمة العليا , romanized : al-Maḥkama al-‘Ulyā ) is the highest court in Israel . It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all other courts, and in some cases original jurisdiction . The Supreme Court consists of 15 judges appointed by
1040-619: The law, and direct challenges to the constitutionality of laws enacted by the Knesset. The Israeli Defense Forces are also subject to the HCJ's judicial review. The court has broad discretionary authority to rule on matters in which it considers it necessary to grant relief in the interests of justice, and which are not within the jurisdiction of another court or tribunal. The High Court of Justice grants relief through orders such as injunction , mandamus and Habeas Corpus , as well as through declaratory judgments . The Supreme Court can also sit at
1080-470: The law, and direct challenges to the constitutionality of laws enacted by the Knesset. The court may review actions by state authorities outside of Israel. By the principle of binding precedent ( stare decisis ), Supreme Court rulings are binding upon every other court, except itself. Over the years, it has ruled on numerous sensitive issues, some of which relate to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict ,
1120-447: The profession of an advocate , served in a judicial capacity or other legal function in the service of the State of Israel or other service as designated in regulations in this regard, or has taught law at a university or a higher school of learning as designated in regulations in this regard. An "eminent jurist" can also be appointed to the Supreme Court. The number of Supreme Court Judges
1160-448: The records were sealed in 1995 for a period of 70 years from the trial date. One person – Yehezkel Jungster – was convicted of crimes against humanity , which carried a mandatory death penalty, but the sentence was commuted to two years in prison. Jungster was pardoned in 1952, but died a few days after his release. According to teacher and researcher Dan Porat , the way in which former kapos were officially viewed – and tried – by
1200-421: The rights of Arab citizens , and discrimination between Jewish groups in Israel. On 24 July 2023, the Knesset passed a bill to prevent the Supreme Court from 'consider[ing] the reasonableness of a decision of the government, the prime minister, or any other minister', which would diminish the power of the Supreme Court to check future actions of the government. On 1 January 2024 the Supreme Court overturned
1240-448: The same offense and it appears from the circumstances revealed in the trial of that other person that the original party convicted of the offense did not commit it; or, where there is a real concern for miscarriage of justice in the conviction. In practice, a ruling to hold a retrial is very rarely made. The Court announces its judgments through individually signed opinions setting out the result and underlying reasoning. In general, there
Kapo (disambiguation) - Misplaced Pages Continue
1280-428: The sentencing phase for some cases. It was during this phase that Jungster was sentenced to death; six other former kapos were each sentenced to an average of almost five years in prison. Jungster’s death sentence had not been anticipated by either the legislators nor the prosecutors, according to Porat, and triggered a number of amendments to pre-trial charges in order to remove any indictment that would potentially carry
1320-411: The state of Israel went through four distinct phases. Initially viewed as co-perpetrators of Nazi atrocities, they eventually came to be perceived as victims themselves. During the first stage described by Porat (August 1950 – January 1952), those alleged to have served or to have collaborated with the Nazis were placed on an equal footing with their captors, with some measure of leniency appearing only in
1360-666: The term was reused as an insult; according to The Jewish Chronicle , it is "the worst insult a Jew can give another Jew". The word "kapo" could have come from the Italian word for "head" and "boss", capo . According to the Duden , it is derived from the French word for " Corporal " ( caporal ). Journalist Robert D. McFadden believes that the word "kapo" is derived from the German word Lagercapo , meaning camp captain. Another interpretation
1400-405: The third phase began (lasting until 1962), the legal system had begun to view kapos as having committed wrongs but with good intentions. Thus, only those whom prosecutors believed had aligned themselves with the Nazis' aims were brought to trial. There were calls from some survivors that the trials should end, though other survivors still demanded that justice be served. The fourth phase (1963 – 1972)
1440-680: Was freed and Israel’s Supreme Court quashed his conviction. The acquittal may have been due to the court’s aim of putting an end to the trials against kapos and other alleged Nazi collaborators. A small number of kapos were prosecuted in East and West Germany. In a well-publicised 1968 case, two Auschwitz kapos were put on trial in Frankfurt . They were indicted for 189 murders and multiple assaults, found guilty of several murders, and sentenced to life imprisonment . German historian Karin Orth wrote that there
1480-497: Was hardly a measure so perfidious as the SS attempt to delegate the implementation of terror and violence to the victims themselves. Eugen Kogon , an avowed opponent of Nazism from prewar Germany and a Buchenwald concentration camp survivor, wrote after the war that the concentration camp system owed its stability in no small way to the cadre of kapos , who took over the daily operations of the camp and relieved SS personnel. The absolute power
1520-589: Was marked by the trial of Adolf Eichmann , one of the principal architects of the Final Solution , and of Hirsch Barenblat two years later. Kapos and collaborators were now seen by the courts as ordinary victims, a complete reversal from the initial official perspective. Eichmann’s prosecutor was very clear in drawing a line between the Jewish collaborators and camp functionaries, and the evil Nazis. Barenblat’s trial in 1963 drove this point home. Barenblat, conductor of
1560-571: Was sentenced to three years' imprisonment and one acquitted and released on 29 November 1947. The Israeli Nazis and Nazi Collaborators (Punishment) Law of 1950, most famously used to prosecute Adolf Eichmann in 1961 and Ivan Demjanjuk in 1986, was originally introduced with the principal aim of prosecuting Jewish people who collaborated with the Nazis. Between 1951 and 1964, approximately 40 trials were held, mostly of people alleged to have been kapos. Fifteen trials are known to have resulted in convictions , but scant details are available since
1600-466: Was ubiquitous. The system of discipline and supervision would have promptly disintegrated, according to Kogon, without the delegation of power. The rivalry over supervisory and warehouse functionary jobs was, for the SS, an opportunity to pit prisoners against each other. Regular prisoners were at the mercy of a dual authority: the SS, who often hardly seemed to be at the camp, and the prisoner kapos , who were always there. The term kapo has been used as
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