Tel Aviv District Court Judge Yardena Seroussi ordered on Tuesday Mizrahi Tefahot Bank to transfer NIS 8 million from the account of businessman Roman Abramovich to ZAKA, an Israeli humanitarian organization. This decision came despite the bank's initial refusal due to EU and UK sanctions against Abramovich.
The case, represented by attorneys Shmulik Cassuto and Bella Pel, drew attention as it contradicted the stance of Israel's Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, who had deemed the bank's refusal reasonable two days prior. Judge Seroussi's decision, which also includes a delay of 72 hours to account for a potential appeal and an order for the bank to pay the applicants' legal expenses, underscores the importance of balancing legal obligations with ethical considerations in international finance and philanthropy.
Judge Seroussi mandated the transfer and accounted for the bank's planned appeal by delaying the decision's implementation by 72 hours. She further criticized the bank for its unnecessary investigation into the applicants and ordered it to cover their legal expenses of NIS 15,000.
In response to the court's ruling, attorney Shmulik Cassuto said: "We thank the court for its decision to allow Mr. Abramovich to donate NIS 8 million to Zaka. The purpose of this lawsuit was to enable Zaka, which receives minimal government support, to be prepared for future challenges and be able to continue doing its holy work on behalf of the Israeli people. Zaka is an important asset for the State of Israel, and Mr. Abramovich is proud to support its activities.”
Judge Yardena Seroussi stated that she is inclined to approve Mr. Abramovich's request to transfer the donation to ZAKA.
Background about the lawsuit
According to the lawsuit, the bank has refused to transfer a donation from Abramovich's account at Bank Mizrachi due to the sanctions imposed on him by the European Union and the British government. Therefore, according to the bank's position, the account must remain frozen even though no sanctions have been imposed on Abramovich in Israel or the United States.
In response to the bank's claims, the judge noted that this was a case in which a request was received to transfer funds from one bank account in Israel to another bank account in Israel: "Is it reasonable that the bank comes and adopts European sanctions when there is no dispute that they do not apply in Israel? Especially if it is a donation to a charity that helps the State of Israel in its difficult time. The across-the-board refusal by the bank is unreasonable.”
The judge added: "You claim that the bank respects the sanctions regime, but it is possible to make an exception in such a case. Here, we are talking about funds that are in Israel and will remain in Israel for a very worthy and especially important cause these days. Why would this harm the bank's reputation?'
At the end of her remarks, the judge advised the bank to approve Mr. Abramovich's request and stated that she is inclined to approve the request to order the bank to transfer the funds to ZAKA.
Roman Abramovich's attorneys Shmulik Cassuto and Bella Peled called the bank’s position absurd: "The bank located in Israel is not obligated to abide by sanctions and the account is not subject to sanctions and yet the bank totally applies sanctions. The Israeli government decided not to join the European sanctions and what is the bank doing? It is applying the sanctions more comprehensively than even the UK.”