Yehuda Eliyahu to Step Down as CEO of Israel Land Authority Following Supreme Court Ruling
Yehuda Eliyahu will officially end his tenure as CEO of the Israel Land Authority (ILA) on Sunday, July 19, following a Supreme Court proposal to annul his appointment. The court's proposal was presented last Friday to the parties involved in the legal petitions challenging Eliyahu's appointment, and the state representatives responded positively within hours. Both the government, represented by a privately funded lawyer, and the petitioners agreed to cancel the decision appointing Eliyahu and the selection committee's recommendation.
Eliyahu was appointed CEO in May, but his appointment faced three petitions citing a conflict of interest due to his close 27-year friendship with Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who appointed him. The Supreme Court indicated early on that the appointment might be invalid, leading Smotrich to request Eliyahu remain in office only until a replacement is found. The government legal advisor opposed this, and the court's plan aligns with that stance.
The selection committee will resume its work with two of its five members replaced over conflict of interest concerns. Until a new CEO is appointed, an interim CEO will be appointed according to civil service law. The committee will interview Eliyahu and the second and third candidates, attorney Shuli Avni Shoham and real estate executive Kobi Yelovitz, with the option to consider additional candidates.
Despite his short tenure of about two months, Eliyahu participated in signing "Gag Agreements" with local authorities in the West Bank, a first in Israeli history, enabling billions of shekels in investment for settlement construction. Recently, a major agreement was signed with the Shomron Regional Council for 12,000 housing units and an 8 billion shekel investment, and a month earlier with Karnei Shomron for 6,000 units and 2 billion shekels.
The state noted unresolved issues remain, including the identity of the interim CEO and how the upcoming elections might affect the government's ability to appoint a permanent CEO now.
