Many countries have legalised or changed the status of cannabis on the understanding that it is not as harmful as was once thought, and it is problematic to criminalise something for which there is no victim. In Israel, the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance still states that possession or use of cannabis is a criminal offence, but new regulations from 2022 have converted the offence to an administrative offence for which there is a fine, rather than imprisonment.
Those who use cannabis in a public place can be fined 1,000 NIS, and in a non-public place 500 NIS. Those who possess cannabis for personal consumption face a fine of 500 NIS. For cannabis, less than 15 g is considered to be for personal use. A public place can also include a car. Important exceptions to the new regulations are soldiers and prisoners. If you have a licence for medical cannabis, then it is totally legal.
However, be careful: cannabis is not truly legal in Israel; it is forbidden to possess more than 15 g, and the import, sale, or even transfer of cannabis is all prohibited. I want to stress that last point: selling any drug or even giving someone drugs, including cannabis, even for free, is a serious criminal offence.
That’s a summary of the law. Police policy is something different, and that seems to be quite lenient due to the change in government policy. The police usually turn a blind eye to the possession or use of cannabis, and generally there do not seem to be fines. Don't sell or give someone drugs, don't flaunt it in public, and you should be okay.
Can you name another substance with so many synonyms or slang terms?
Acapulco gold, alfalfa, ashes, bhang, bifter, blaze, blow, blunt, broccoli, bud, bush, cannabis, chronic, dank, devil's lettuce, doobie, dope, draw, flower, ganja, gear, green, hash, hashish, hemp, herb, jive, joint, kief, kush, loco weed, loud, marijuana, mary jane, maui wowie, nug, pakalolo, panama red, puff, purple haze, reefer, roach, sativa, shatter, sinsemilla, skunk, smoke, spliff, sticky icky, tea, trees, twist, wacky backy, weed, yayo, zoot.
שאול דיוויס, עורך דין
Saul Davis
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