22 aug 2017
On Tuesday, Israeli police stationed at the gates leading to Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, in Jerusalem’s Old City, prevented the entry of textbooks destined for three Palestinian schools located inside the Muslim holy compound.
The books were going to two high schools and a kindergarten.
The police prevented the entry of the books because they bore the logo of the Palestinian Authority.
The Palestinian school year starts on Wednesday.
Most Palestinian schools in East Jerusalem teach the Palestinian curriculum. The Israel Ministry of Education, run by right-wing extremist Naftali Bennet, is trying to ban use of Palestinian books in occupied Jerusalem and replace them with Israeli-issued textbooks, which Palestinians strongly oppose because the Israeli books distort and misrepresent Palestinian history and culture.
According to WAFA, the West Jerusalem Israeli municipality is also pressing East Jerusalem schools not to teach Palestinian curriculum by denying the schools that teach the Palestinian textbooks financial subsidies while granting those that teach the Israeli curriculum hefty portions of financial assistance.
Archive IMEMC post: 05/17/15 Bennett Wants to See Palestinians Become ‘Water Carriers and Wood Hewers’ for Jews
The books were going to two high schools and a kindergarten.
The police prevented the entry of the books because they bore the logo of the Palestinian Authority.
The Palestinian school year starts on Wednesday.
Most Palestinian schools in East Jerusalem teach the Palestinian curriculum. The Israel Ministry of Education, run by right-wing extremist Naftali Bennet, is trying to ban use of Palestinian books in occupied Jerusalem and replace them with Israeli-issued textbooks, which Palestinians strongly oppose because the Israeli books distort and misrepresent Palestinian history and culture.
According to WAFA, the West Jerusalem Israeli municipality is also pressing East Jerusalem schools not to teach Palestinian curriculum by denying the schools that teach the Palestinian textbooks financial subsidies while granting those that teach the Israeli curriculum hefty portions of financial assistance.
Archive IMEMC post: 05/17/15 Bennett Wants to See Palestinians Become ‘Water Carriers and Wood Hewers’ for Jews
An Israeli court ordered Tuesday the eviction of the Shamasna family from their home in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in occupied Jerusalem.
Earlier on Monday, the court had refused an appeal submitted by the family against the eviction order which was issued several years ago.
Speaking to the PIC reporter, Mohamed Shamasna expressed concern that the family house could be evicted at any moment.
For his part, Hatem Abdel-Qader, a member of Fatah movement's Revolutionary Council, considered the eviction order as a political decision par excellence which only serves Israeli settlers.
Israelis have claimed that Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood was once the site of a 19th century Jewish community. Many families in the neighborhood have been embroiled in legal disputes for decades, as various Israeli settlers have attempted to claim ownership over their homes.
According to the Israeli law, Jewish Israelis are permitted to claim ownership over property believed to have been owned by Jews before 1948 during Ottoman or British rule. However, such a law does not exist for the hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees who were displaced from their lands and homes during and after the establishment of the state of Israel.
Earlier on Monday, the court had refused an appeal submitted by the family against the eviction order which was issued several years ago.
Speaking to the PIC reporter, Mohamed Shamasna expressed concern that the family house could be evicted at any moment.
For his part, Hatem Abdel-Qader, a member of Fatah movement's Revolutionary Council, considered the eviction order as a political decision par excellence which only serves Israeli settlers.
Israelis have claimed that Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood was once the site of a 19th century Jewish community. Many families in the neighborhood have been embroiled in legal disputes for decades, as various Israeli settlers have attempted to claim ownership over their homes.
According to the Israeli law, Jewish Israelis are permitted to claim ownership over property believed to have been owned by Jews before 1948 during Ottoman or British rule. However, such a law does not exist for the hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees who were displaced from their lands and homes during and after the establishment of the state of Israel.
21 aug 2017
Nearly 3,800 Palestinians have been arrested since the beginning of 2017, according to official Palestinian statistics on Monday.
Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners Commission said in a statement that the arrests this year included families of detainees as part of an Israeli collective punishment policy pursued against the Palestinian people.
Head of the Commission, Isa Qaraqe, described these "retaliatory practices" as war crimes and flagrant violations of the international law and the Fourth Geneva Convention.
Qaraqe pointed out that the sanctions imposed recently on the family of the Palestinian detainee Omar al-Abed constitute a "blatant example of the arbitrary collective punishment policy adopted by the Israeli occupation authorities".
Around 6,400 Palestinian prisoners are being held in Israeli jails including 62 females, 10 of whom are minors, 300 children, 450 administrative detainees and 12 MPs.
Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners Commission said in a statement that the arrests this year included families of detainees as part of an Israeli collective punishment policy pursued against the Palestinian people.
Head of the Commission, Isa Qaraqe, described these "retaliatory practices" as war crimes and flagrant violations of the international law and the Fourth Geneva Convention.
Qaraqe pointed out that the sanctions imposed recently on the family of the Palestinian detainee Omar al-Abed constitute a "blatant example of the arbitrary collective punishment policy adopted by the Israeli occupation authorities".
Around 6,400 Palestinian prisoners are being held in Israeli jails including 62 females, 10 of whom are minors, 300 children, 450 administrative detainees and 12 MPs.
Israeli bulldozers attempted to demolish parts of al-Yousfiya Cemetery, adjacent to Jerusalem’s historical wall.
Head of the committee in charge of Jerusalem’s Islamic Cemeteries, Mustafa Abu Zahra, said an Israeli municipality bulldozer attempted to knock down the western wall of al-Yousfiya Cemetery.
Abu Zahra added that the committee stopped the demolition process, which the occupation authorities said was initiated to construct parks for Israeli settlers and terraces overlooking al-Zaytoun Mount (east of Occupied Jerusalem).
Material damage was reportedly wrought by the Israeli bulldozers in the vicinity of the cemetery.
Last month, Israeli municipal crews carried out excavation works at the targeted cemetery in an attempt to establish a public garden, in violation of the sanctity of dead bodies.
Head of the committee in charge of Jerusalem’s Islamic Cemeteries, Mustafa Abu Zahra, said an Israeli municipality bulldozer attempted to knock down the western wall of al-Yousfiya Cemetery.
Abu Zahra added that the committee stopped the demolition process, which the occupation authorities said was initiated to construct parks for Israeli settlers and terraces overlooking al-Zaytoun Mount (east of Occupied Jerusalem).
Material damage was reportedly wrought by the Israeli bulldozers in the vicinity of the cemetery.
Last month, Israeli municipal crews carried out excavation works at the targeted cemetery in an attempt to establish a public garden, in violation of the sanctity of dead bodies.
Hamas Resistance Movement mourned on Sunday the death of Quteiba Zahran, who was killed by the Israeli army after he carried out an anti-occupation stabbing attack at Zaatara checkpoint, describing him as one of its cadres.
Hamas said slain Zahran has been known for his self-abnegation and deep-seated love for his motherland and people.
“Zahran paid his life for the sake of his land and people,” Hamas statement read. “Our struggle for national liberation is ongoing. We will keep resisting until the Israeli occupation ceases to exist.”
Hamas said slain Zahran has been known for his self-abnegation and deep-seated love for his motherland and people.
“Zahran paid his life for the sake of his land and people,” Hamas statement read. “Our struggle for national liberation is ongoing. We will keep resisting until the Israeli occupation ceases to exist.”
20 aug 2017
Al-Ahrar Movement said on Sunday that the meeting held between the Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas and the Israeli left-wing Meretz party is a stab in the back of the Palestinian people.
In a press statement on Sunday, the Movement described the meeting as a blatant disregard for the suffering of the Palestinian people and an attempt to "whitewash the image of the Israeli occupation" rather than prosecuting its leaders at international courts.
Al-Ahrar stressed that Abbas's reception of the Israeli delegation while launching a campaign of unjust measures against the Gaza Strip is a "national crime" and a "disrespect for the national consensus which rejects such normalization meetings".
The Palestinian official news agency reported on Sunday that Abbas received a delegation from Meretz party headed by Zehava Gal-On at the presidential headquarters in Ramallah.
In a press statement on Sunday, the Movement described the meeting as a blatant disregard for the suffering of the Palestinian people and an attempt to "whitewash the image of the Israeli occupation" rather than prosecuting its leaders at international courts.
Al-Ahrar stressed that Abbas's reception of the Israeli delegation while launching a campaign of unjust measures against the Gaza Strip is a "national crime" and a "disrespect for the national consensus which rejects such normalization meetings".
The Palestinian official news agency reported on Sunday that Abbas received a delegation from Meretz party headed by Zehava Gal-On at the presidential headquarters in Ramallah.
19 aug 2017
In the Ibrahimi School Courtyard and around the Ibrahimi Mosque in al-Khalil city, there are hundreds of old and modern Palestinian houses. However, the unfortunate side of this picture is that several of these homes have become “hornets’ nests” where extremist Jewish settlers live after taking them over with the help of the Israeli occupation authority (IOA).
In the southeast corner of the Ibrahimi School Courtyard, some Palestinian families live in an old three-story house belonging to the family of Abu Rajab al-Tamimi.
The house, which overlooks the Ibrahimi Mosque, has been for a while another prey for Jewish fanatics, who attempted several times before to seize it and recently managed under Israeli military and security protection to force the Palestinian residents out and occupy it.
Mohamed Abu Rajab, the home-owner’s son, has appealed to his fellow Palestinian citizens in al-Khalil and other occupied areas to intervene and help the families restore the house.
“Some 120 settlers stormed our house about two weeks ago. They detained us on the first floor and prevented us from going up to the upper floors and the roof. They physically assaulted us and pushed my mother to the ground, trying to kill her. All that happened under military protection,” Abu Rajab told the Palestinian Information Center (PIC)
“This was not the first time they raided the house. They broke into it in 2012 and stayed there for days before the [Israeli] army drove them out, and later they stormed it in 2013, occupying it for several days before being evacuated,” he explained.
“They have come back more ferociously this time…they are backed by Israeli ministers and lawmakers. They are still occupying the second and third floors as well as the roof, cramming us on the first floor and controlling our entry and exit,” he added.
Abu Rajab pointed out that the settlers embarked on carrying diggings inside the house and causing damage to its structure.
For his part, Imad Hamdan, head of al-Khalil Rehabilitation Committee, stated that the IOA and settler groups always take advantage of certain political developments to create new faits accomplis on the ground through carrying out more settlement activities and grabbing lands and homes.
“As you know, the break-in at the house of Abu Rajab family took place as the Jerusalemites were busy rallying at the Aqsa Mosque’s gates to protect it,” Hamdan said.
He told the PIC that the residents of the house would receive a legal help to force the settlers to leave as happened in 2012 and 2013.
In the southeast corner of the Ibrahimi School Courtyard, some Palestinian families live in an old three-story house belonging to the family of Abu Rajab al-Tamimi.
The house, which overlooks the Ibrahimi Mosque, has been for a while another prey for Jewish fanatics, who attempted several times before to seize it and recently managed under Israeli military and security protection to force the Palestinian residents out and occupy it.
Mohamed Abu Rajab, the home-owner’s son, has appealed to his fellow Palestinian citizens in al-Khalil and other occupied areas to intervene and help the families restore the house.
“Some 120 settlers stormed our house about two weeks ago. They detained us on the first floor and prevented us from going up to the upper floors and the roof. They physically assaulted us and pushed my mother to the ground, trying to kill her. All that happened under military protection,” Abu Rajab told the Palestinian Information Center (PIC)
“This was not the first time they raided the house. They broke into it in 2012 and stayed there for days before the [Israeli] army drove them out, and later they stormed it in 2013, occupying it for several days before being evacuated,” he explained.
“They have come back more ferociously this time…they are backed by Israeli ministers and lawmakers. They are still occupying the second and third floors as well as the roof, cramming us on the first floor and controlling our entry and exit,” he added.
Abu Rajab pointed out that the settlers embarked on carrying diggings inside the house and causing damage to its structure.
For his part, Imad Hamdan, head of al-Khalil Rehabilitation Committee, stated that the IOA and settler groups always take advantage of certain political developments to create new faits accomplis on the ground through carrying out more settlement activities and grabbing lands and homes.
“As you know, the break-in at the house of Abu Rajab family took place as the Jerusalemites were busy rallying at the Aqsa Mosque’s gates to protect it,” Hamdan said.
He told the PIC that the residents of the house would receive a legal help to force the settlers to leave as happened in 2012 and 2013.
17 aug 2017
The Israeli occupation army at dawn Thursday detonated a house belonging to a Palestinian family near Ramallah city as part of the mass punishment policy pursued against relatives of Palestinian attackers.
According to local sources, Israeli troops stormed Deir Abu Mash'al village and forced families to evacuate neighboring homes before they embarked on planting explosives inside the house of martyr Adel Ankoush and then blasting it.
The explosion inside the house caused a fire in a nearby home and material damage to others.
Meanwhile, soldiers attacked angry local residents with tear gas. Drones were also seen overflying the village during the events.
Last Thursday, an Israeli military force had demolished two houses belonging to families of martyrs in the same village and sealed up the house of Ankoush for later demolition.
Martyr Adel Ankoush along with two other young men from the village carried out, on June 16, a shooting and stabbing attack in Occupied Jerusalem. One policewoman was killed and others were injured in the attack.
According to local sources, Israeli troops stormed Deir Abu Mash'al village and forced families to evacuate neighboring homes before they embarked on planting explosives inside the house of martyr Adel Ankoush and then blasting it.
The explosion inside the house caused a fire in a nearby home and material damage to others.
Meanwhile, soldiers attacked angry local residents with tear gas. Drones were also seen overflying the village during the events.
Last Thursday, an Israeli military force had demolished two houses belonging to families of martyrs in the same village and sealed up the house of Ankoush for later demolition.
Martyr Adel Ankoush along with two other young men from the village carried out, on June 16, a shooting and stabbing attack in Occupied Jerusalem. One policewoman was killed and others were injured in the attack.
16 aug 2017
As part of the collective punishment policy adopted by the Israeli forces against the Palestinian civilians accused of carrying out attacks against Israeli soldiers or/and settlers, on Wednesday, 16 August 2017, the Israeli forces demolished a house belonging to ‘Omer ‘Abdel Jalil al-‘Abed in Kobar village, northwest of Ramallah.
The Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) accordingly condemns this new crime, which is added to the series of Israeli crimes committed in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt).
PCHR also emphasizes that the crime is part of the Israeli forces’ collective punishment policy against innocent Palestinians in violation of Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention that prohibits collective penalties and reprisals against protected persons and their property. PCHR calls upon the international community to offer protection to the civilians in the oPt and ensure the application of the aforementioned convention.
According to PCHR’s investigations, at approximately 01:30 on Wednesday, 16 August 2017, Israeli forces backed by 20 military vehicles and accompanied with a digger and bulldozer moved into Kobar village, northwest of Ramallah.
They then surrounded a 2-storey house belonging to the family of ‘Omer ‘Abdel Jalil al-‘Abed. The house was built on an area of 180 square meters, sheltering 7 members, including a girl with special needs. The Israeli vehicles immediately destroyed the walls of the ground floor, which was inhabited, while the second floor, which was under-construction, sustained severe damage.
Meanwhile, the Palestine TV crew was covering the house demolition, so the Israeli soldiers deliberately fired rubber-coated metal bullets at the Palestine TV photographer, Mohammed Radi.
As a result, he was hit with a bullet to the nose and then taken by an ambulance belonging to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) to Palestine Medical Complex in Ramallah for medical treatment. Local sources in the Complex said that the bullet fractured his nose.
It should be mentioned that the abovementioned civilian has been arrested by the Israeli forces since 21 July 2017 on grounds of carrying out a stab attack in “Helmish” settlement, northwest of Ramallah that resulted in the killing of 3 settlers.
The Israeli forces have also arrested his parents; 2 brothers, Munir and Khalid; and his uncle, Ibrahim al-‘Abed, accusing them of having prior knowledge of the attack.
On 10 August 2017, Israeli forces on the same grounds, demolished 2 houses and closed a third one with compact cork in Deir Mesh’al village, northwest of Ramallah. Meanwhile, another house was demolished in Silwad village, northeast of the city.
PCHR condemns the crime of demolishing the abovementioned houses that falls within the collective punishment policy adopted by the Israeli forces against the Palestinian civilians. PCHR reminds that this policy is internationally prohibited according to Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which states that:
“No protected person may be punished for an offense he or she has not personally committed. Collective penalties and likewise all measures of intimidation or of terrorism are prohibited. Pillage is prohibited. Reprisals against protected persons and their property are prohibited.”
Therefore, PCHR reiterates its call upon the international community to take immediate action to put an end to the Israeli crimes.
PCHR also reiterates its call upon the High Contracting Parties to the 1949 Fourth Geneva Convention to fulfill their obligations under Article 1; i.e., to respect and ensure respect for the Convention in all circumstances and their obligations under Article 146 to prosecute persons alleged to commit grave breaches of the Fourth Geneva Convention.
These grave breaches constitute war crimes under Article 147 of the same Convention and Protocol (I) Additional to the Geneva Conventions regarding the guarantee of Palestinian civilians’ right to protection in the oPt.
The Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) accordingly condemns this new crime, which is added to the series of Israeli crimes committed in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt).
PCHR also emphasizes that the crime is part of the Israeli forces’ collective punishment policy against innocent Palestinians in violation of Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention that prohibits collective penalties and reprisals against protected persons and their property. PCHR calls upon the international community to offer protection to the civilians in the oPt and ensure the application of the aforementioned convention.
According to PCHR’s investigations, at approximately 01:30 on Wednesday, 16 August 2017, Israeli forces backed by 20 military vehicles and accompanied with a digger and bulldozer moved into Kobar village, northwest of Ramallah.
They then surrounded a 2-storey house belonging to the family of ‘Omer ‘Abdel Jalil al-‘Abed. The house was built on an area of 180 square meters, sheltering 7 members, including a girl with special needs. The Israeli vehicles immediately destroyed the walls of the ground floor, which was inhabited, while the second floor, which was under-construction, sustained severe damage.
Meanwhile, the Palestine TV crew was covering the house demolition, so the Israeli soldiers deliberately fired rubber-coated metal bullets at the Palestine TV photographer, Mohammed Radi.
As a result, he was hit with a bullet to the nose and then taken by an ambulance belonging to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) to Palestine Medical Complex in Ramallah for medical treatment. Local sources in the Complex said that the bullet fractured his nose.
It should be mentioned that the abovementioned civilian has been arrested by the Israeli forces since 21 July 2017 on grounds of carrying out a stab attack in “Helmish” settlement, northwest of Ramallah that resulted in the killing of 3 settlers.
The Israeli forces have also arrested his parents; 2 brothers, Munir and Khalid; and his uncle, Ibrahim al-‘Abed, accusing them of having prior knowledge of the attack.
On 10 August 2017, Israeli forces on the same grounds, demolished 2 houses and closed a third one with compact cork in Deir Mesh’al village, northwest of Ramallah. Meanwhile, another house was demolished in Silwad village, northeast of the city.
PCHR condemns the crime of demolishing the abovementioned houses that falls within the collective punishment policy adopted by the Israeli forces against the Palestinian civilians. PCHR reminds that this policy is internationally prohibited according to Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which states that:
“No protected person may be punished for an offense he or she has not personally committed. Collective penalties and likewise all measures of intimidation or of terrorism are prohibited. Pillage is prohibited. Reprisals against protected persons and their property are prohibited.”
Therefore, PCHR reiterates its call upon the international community to take immediate action to put an end to the Israeli crimes.
PCHR also reiterates its call upon the High Contracting Parties to the 1949 Fourth Geneva Convention to fulfill their obligations under Article 1; i.e., to respect and ensure respect for the Convention in all circumstances and their obligations under Article 146 to prosecute persons alleged to commit grave breaches of the Fourth Geneva Convention.
These grave breaches constitute war crimes under Article 147 of the same Convention and Protocol (I) Additional to the Geneva Conventions regarding the guarantee of Palestinian civilians’ right to protection in the oPt.
8 aug 2017
Israel has revoked the status of at least 14,595 Palestinians from occupied Jerusalem since 1967, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a new report issued Tuesday.
Israel’s revocation of the residency status of thousands of Palestinians from East Jerusalem over the years illustrates the two-tiered system Israel maintains in the city. The residency system imposes onerous requirements on Palestinians to maintain their status, with significant consequences for those who don’t, the organization added.
Israeli authorities have justified most revocations based on a failure to prove a “center of life” in Jerusalem but, in recent years, they have also revoked status to punish Palestinians accused of attacking Israelis and as collective punishment against relatives of suspected assailants. The discriminatory system pushes many Palestinians to leave their home city in what amounts to forcible transfers, a serious violation of international law, according to the report.
“Israel claims to treat Jerusalem as a unified city, but the reality is effectively one set of rules for Jews and another for Palestinians,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “Entrenched discrimination against Palestinians in Jerusalem, including residency policies that imperil their legal status, feeds the alienation of the city’s residents.”
Human Rights Watch interviewed eight families in Jerusalem whose residency has been revoked between March and July 2017, reviewed status revocation letters, court decisions, and other official documents, in addition to speaking to their lawyers.
One man whose residency Israel had cancelled said he had to scale Israel’s separation barrier to attend a family wedding in another part of the West Bank. Another said Israeli authorities refused to issue birth certificates to his five children, all born in Jerusalem.
Other Jerusalem residents without residency status interviewed described being unable to legally work; obtain social welfare benefits; attend weddings and funerals; or visit gravely ill relatives abroad, for fear Israeli authorities would refuse to allow them to return home.
Residency revocations, alongside decades of unlawful settlement expansion, home demolitions, and restrictions on building in the city, have increased unlawful settlement by Israeli Jewish citizens in occupied Jerusalem while restricting growth of the occupied Palestinian population.
This reality reflects the Israeli government’s goal of “maintaining a solid Jewish majority in the city,” as stated in the Jerusalem municipality’s master plan: “Jerusalem Outline Plan 2000”, and limiting the number of Palestinian residents.
Originally setting a target “ratio of 70% Jews and 30% Arab,” planners later acknowledged that “this goal is not attainable” in light of “the demographic trend” and adjusted to a 60-40 target. Palestinians constituted 37 percent of Jerusalem’s population in 2015, according to Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics.
Israel’s revocation of the residency status of thousands of Palestinians from East Jerusalem over the years illustrates the two-tiered system Israel maintains in the city. The residency system imposes onerous requirements on Palestinians to maintain their status, with significant consequences for those who don’t, the organization added.
Israeli authorities have justified most revocations based on a failure to prove a “center of life” in Jerusalem but, in recent years, they have also revoked status to punish Palestinians accused of attacking Israelis and as collective punishment against relatives of suspected assailants. The discriminatory system pushes many Palestinians to leave their home city in what amounts to forcible transfers, a serious violation of international law, according to the report.
“Israel claims to treat Jerusalem as a unified city, but the reality is effectively one set of rules for Jews and another for Palestinians,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “Entrenched discrimination against Palestinians in Jerusalem, including residency policies that imperil their legal status, feeds the alienation of the city’s residents.”
Human Rights Watch interviewed eight families in Jerusalem whose residency has been revoked between March and July 2017, reviewed status revocation letters, court decisions, and other official documents, in addition to speaking to their lawyers.
One man whose residency Israel had cancelled said he had to scale Israel’s separation barrier to attend a family wedding in another part of the West Bank. Another said Israeli authorities refused to issue birth certificates to his five children, all born in Jerusalem.
Other Jerusalem residents without residency status interviewed described being unable to legally work; obtain social welfare benefits; attend weddings and funerals; or visit gravely ill relatives abroad, for fear Israeli authorities would refuse to allow them to return home.
Residency revocations, alongside decades of unlawful settlement expansion, home demolitions, and restrictions on building in the city, have increased unlawful settlement by Israeli Jewish citizens in occupied Jerusalem while restricting growth of the occupied Palestinian population.
This reality reflects the Israeli government’s goal of “maintaining a solid Jewish majority in the city,” as stated in the Jerusalem municipality’s master plan: “Jerusalem Outline Plan 2000”, and limiting the number of Palestinian residents.
Originally setting a target “ratio of 70% Jews and 30% Arab,” planners later acknowledged that “this goal is not attainable” in light of “the demographic trend” and adjusted to a 60-40 target. Palestinians constituted 37 percent of Jerusalem’s population in 2015, according to Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics.
6 aug 2017
Father Atallah Hanna, Archbishop of the Palestinian Orthodox Church in Occupied Jerusalem, has threatened to stage protests against the real estate deals that involved the lease of three church-owned buildings for a right-wing Jewish settler group in east Jerusalem.
In his meeting on Sunday with Christian clerics in Jerusalem, Father Hanna stated that the Orthodox Church would not allow Jewish settlers to live in buildings that are part of the Christian Orthodox heritage in the holy city, pledging to thwart the Israeli plan.
Father Hanna called for urgent action to prevent any Jewish settler from occupying the church-owned properties in Bab al-Khalil (Jaffa Gate) area of the Old City.
“We call for practical steps to foil this conspiratorial scheme against the Christian presence in our holy city,” he said.
“As the Jerusalemites succeeded, with their unity, steadfastness and firmness, in forcing the occupation authorities to remove the metal gates and cameras from the Aqsa Mosque’s entrances, we are also capable, with our unity, fraternity and solidarity, of frustrating this ominous and dangerous plot that targets our Orthodox mortmain properties in Bab al-Khalil,” Archbishop underscored.
“I call for real protest steps, which could include pitching a sit-in tent in Bab al-Khalil near the targeted hotels, or storming these hotels to challenge the settlers who plan to take them over,” he stressed.
The Israeli district court in Jerusalem recently confirmed the validity of three real estate deals struck between officials from the Greek Orthodox Church and overseas straw buyers that acted secretly on behalf of an Israeli right-wing settler group.
The district court ruled that the agreements, in which three major east Jerusalem buildings, including two hotels, had been leased in 2004 for 99 renewable years by Ateret Cohanim organization through three overseas holding companies, were “valid and did not involve a fraudulent activity.”
The deals were so appalling and devastating to the Palestinians because behind them stood Ateret Cohanim, which works to acquire property to establish a Jewish majority in the Old City and in Arab neighborhoods of east Jerusalem.
In his meeting on Sunday with Christian clerics in Jerusalem, Father Hanna stated that the Orthodox Church would not allow Jewish settlers to live in buildings that are part of the Christian Orthodox heritage in the holy city, pledging to thwart the Israeli plan.
Father Hanna called for urgent action to prevent any Jewish settler from occupying the church-owned properties in Bab al-Khalil (Jaffa Gate) area of the Old City.
“We call for practical steps to foil this conspiratorial scheme against the Christian presence in our holy city,” he said.
“As the Jerusalemites succeeded, with their unity, steadfastness and firmness, in forcing the occupation authorities to remove the metal gates and cameras from the Aqsa Mosque’s entrances, we are also capable, with our unity, fraternity and solidarity, of frustrating this ominous and dangerous plot that targets our Orthodox mortmain properties in Bab al-Khalil,” Archbishop underscored.
“I call for real protest steps, which could include pitching a sit-in tent in Bab al-Khalil near the targeted hotels, or storming these hotels to challenge the settlers who plan to take them over,” he stressed.
The Israeli district court in Jerusalem recently confirmed the validity of three real estate deals struck between officials from the Greek Orthodox Church and overseas straw buyers that acted secretly on behalf of an Israeli right-wing settler group.
The district court ruled that the agreements, in which three major east Jerusalem buildings, including two hotels, had been leased in 2004 for 99 renewable years by Ateret Cohanim organization through three overseas holding companies, were “valid and did not involve a fraudulent activity.”
The deals were so appalling and devastating to the Palestinians because behind them stood Ateret Cohanim, which works to acquire property to establish a Jewish majority in the Old City and in Arab neighborhoods of east Jerusalem.
