The Greek Patriarchate confirmed the right of the JNF to extend the long-term lease of land in the center of Jerusalem

The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate sent a response to the petition of the residents of houses built on its former lands in the center of Jerusalem to the High Court of Justice.

In this document, the Patriarchate confirmed for the first time before the court that it had no doubt that the Jewish National Fund (JNF/KKL) would renew the long-term leases, as it had stated.

We are talking about 520 dunams in the Talbiya and Rehavia neighborhoods in the center of Jerusalem. On this territory there are houses with 900 apartments, three hotels of the highest category – Inbal, Prima Royal and Dan Panorama, as well as public institutions, including the Khan Theater, the Great Synagogue, the Begin Heritage Center, part of the Israel Museum and the Israel Democracy Institute. Long-term leases signed in the early 1950s give the JNF virtually full rights to all sites for $30,000 a year.

As part of a petition submitted to the High Court in July 2025, residents are demanding that the JNF renew leases that expire in 2051-2052. Due to uncertainty about the future of land plots and fears that residents will be evicted, the cost of apartments has fallen by tens of percent.

The Patriarchate’s statement complicates the situation for the group of American developer Gary Barnett, which in 2023 bought ownership of these plots for 750 million shekels from the Neot Komemiut company. She, in turn, acquired the land from the Patriarchate in two stages, the last of which took place in 2016, for approximately 114 million shekels.

Along with ownership, Barnett also received a long-term lease agreement with the JNF, and while it is in force, the owner cannot dispose of the land. The dispute is over whether the JNF has the right to extend the lease and how much it must pay for it. From the patriarchy’s response it follows that the new owners will have to agree to an extension.

The Patriarchate attached to its response a letter received from the JNF in January 2023, several months before the signing of the deal with Barnett. In it, the fund asked to clarify to future buyers that the plots are subject to its lease rights and the option to extend them, and the patriarchy and its successors are left with only formal ownership, which boils down to receiving an annual rent.