The Office of the European Union Representative called today upon the Israeli occupation authorities to cancel a recent court ruling, which orders the eviction of eight Palestinian families in the Batan al-Hawa neighborhood of Silwan in East Jerusalem and a ninth family in Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.
On November 3 and 23, Israeli courts ruled to uphold eviction of eight Palestinian families in the Batan al-Hawa neighborhood of Silwan in East Jerusalem – affecting 45 people, including small children – and the Sabbagh family in Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem – affecting 32 members of the family, including six children, putting all families at imminent risk of forced transfer.
Evictions of Palestinians threatens Jerusalem https://t.co/rXuKcsSu3Q
— Malcolm Nazareth (@malnazareth) December 10, 2020
The EU Representative said that in the last several years, the number of eviction decisions has increased in particular in Sheikh Jarrah and Silwan, where entire communities of close to 200 families are at risk. In Batan al-Hawa alone, 14 families have already lost their homes since 2015 and over 80 other households are facing eviction demands and are at imminent risk of displacement.
The EU missions in Jerusalem and Ramallah recalled the successive Foreign Affairs Council Conclusions and statements in which the EU has repeated its strong opposition to Israel’s settlement policy and actions taken in this context, including evictions.
“This policy is illegal under international law and its continuation undermines the viability of the two-state solution, the prospect for a lasting peace and seriously jeopardizes the possibility of Jerusalem serving as the future capital of both States.”
Israeli settlers harassing #EU representatives visiting site under threat of Israeli colonization in #Jerusalem. https://t.co/t1TQwwlED2
— PLO Department of Public Diplomacy & Policy (@PalestinePDP) November 16, 2020
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Territories (OCHA), “In recent decades, Israeli settler organizations, with the support of the Israeli authorities, have taken control of properties within Palestinian neighborhoods in East Jerusalem and established settlement compounds.”
“Palestinian houses have been transferred to settler organizations by various means. In some cases, settlers have pursued court cases to evict the Palestinian residents, on the grounds that the land or buildings were owned by Jewish individuals or associations in East Jerusalem prior to 1948,” OCHA said in a recent report.
(Palestine Chronicle, WAFA, Social Media)
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