Published Aug 4, 2026, 3:45 PM EDT
An Israeli court halted a $6.3 million crocodile prison plan after an animal rights petition while prisoner welfare complaints persist.
Follow
Published Aug 4, 2026, 3:45 PM EDT
Israel’s plan to surround part of a prison with Nile crocodiles survived warnings that the animals could endanger prisoners, employees and the public. It moved forward after the country’s Supreme Court found that the state had failed to provide adequate food to Palestinian security prisoners. Officials allocated 21 million shekels (around $6 million USD), began digging a 560-foot channel, and trained officers to handle the reptiles. None of those concerns stopped the project. The plan went on hold only after an animal rights organization argued that the crocodiles might suffer. The Jerusalem District Court’s Aug. 2 injunction does not require officials to fill the trench or permanently abandon the project. It blocks the transfer, selection and preparation of crocodiles while the court reviews the case. Israel may still have a channel under construction, but it cannot operate the project as a crocodile moat without crocodiles.
