Jerusalem District Court Judge Alexander Ron has ordered IKEA's newly opened Esthaol branch near Beit Shemesh to close about one third of the store until further notice. The court was ruling on an administrative petition filed by the Jerusalem district planner Shira Talmi Babay contesting the Jerusalem District Appeals Committee decision to allow the furniture store to open despite building violations. RELATED ARTICLES IKEA opens Beit Shemesh store Beit Shemesh IKEA store to open despite building offences IKEA Israel to reopen stores Ikea opens Tel Aviv store Talmi Babay claims that the decisions by the Jerusalem District Planning and Building Committee and the Jerusalem District Appeals Committee legitimized serious building offenses committed by the land's owners covering thousands of square meters. The petition described these violations as 'unprecedented in their seriousness.' The petition asked the court to seal off the areas that were built without permission. Judge Ron handed down a temporary injunction until a final decision is reached. The ruling affects 8,000 square meters of offices, operational and logistics areas but not the 17,000 square meter store itself. The store was built by businessman Tzachi Nahmias, who owns the land, and has leased the building to IKEA. Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on June 5, 2020 © Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2020
