Society of Saint Yves

The Society of St. Yves (SY) is a Catholic human rights organization working under the patronage of the Latin Patriarchate in Jerusalem.

Fields of work

We provide legal assistance, consultation, and judicial advocacy free of charge to all segments of society without discrimination

Jerusalem Residency

Following the 1967 occupation of East Jerusalem, Israel illegally annexed East Jerusalem but did not grant citizenship to its Palestinian population.

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Freedom of Movement

Freedom of movement is a universal right to every human being. Everyone has the right to leave any country including his own, and has the right to return to his country.

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National Insurance

Despite the fact that 68.4% of the Palestinians residents of East Jerusalem live under poverty line, only a small percentage of them receive social services and benefits from the national insurance.

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House Demolitions

Thousands of demolition orders are pending and can be carried out any minute, causing more Palestinian families to be forcibly displaced and transferred out of their lands.

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Family Reunification

Since the illegal annexation of East Jerusalem in 1967, Israeli citizens and residents married to residents of the Occupied Palestinian Territories were able to obtain a legal status in Israel for their spouse after an application process.

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Child Registration

It is estimated that currently tens of thousands unregistered Palestinian children live in Jerusalem, as Israel does not give automatically identification to children when one of the parents is neither an Israeli citizens or a permanent resident.

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Rights Of People With Disabilities in East Jerusalem

People with disabilities in East Jerusalem are no exception to the Israeli discriminatory policies against Palestinians and suffer from discrimination in their rights and entitlements, mainly in access to services.

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Rising challenges

Promoting Palestinian Rights in East Jerusalem

Organization updates January 29, 2025

January 16, Adv. Raffoul Rofa, Director of the Society of St. Yves, met with representatives from...

We uphold accountability and justice, ensuring every action meets the highest standards of integrity & fairness.

Publications

Urgent: Masafer Yatta Faces Imminent Threat of Forcible Transfer

January 11, 2025

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Saint Yves 2024: A Year of Impact and Advocacy

January 2, 2025

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The occupation demolishes the Khallet Amaira school

July 8, 2024

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St. Yves impact

Over the past year, our team managed to successfully achieve

Home Demolitions cases West Bank

Home Demolitions cases Jerusalem

Freedom of Movement cases

Access to Land – Westbank cases

Residency cases-Jerusalem

Driving permits for Family unification cases

Rental Assistance cases

Arnona cases

National Insurance cases

Number of Beneficiaries in all our Fields of work

Public Interest cases

Public Structure cases

Services all Fields of work

Consultations all Fields of work

Message from the Director of Saint Yves

At Society of Saint Yves, our mission is to provide legal aid to those oppressed and marginalized. While our work is deeply rooted in providing customized and personalized free legal aid support to Palestinians, we recognize that many cases reflect systematic challenges. Often, recuring legal issues affect entire communities, necessitating actions beyond legal aid that include awareness raising campaigns and advocacy efforts.

Message from the board

The aim is, to improve the lives of as many people as possible

The work of St. Yves is work on behalf of individuals and reflective of the lawyer-client-relationship of personal professional service. Nevertheless often similar issues arise in so many individual cases that an action on behalf of a class of people is necessary. St. Yves undertakes such class actions when they are demanded.

His Beatitude Pierbattista Pizzaballa

Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Chairman of the Board of Directors

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