21 feb 2014
The Jerusalem Municipality staff has recently informed citizen Ahmad Siyam, from Farouk neighborhood in Silwan, that he must pay 248 thousand shekels in order to obtain a license for his building. His son Daoud Siyam said in a press statement that his father has already paid 29 thousand and 800 shekels cash for the Israeli municipality about two weeks ago.
He added that when his father went to the municipality to inform them that he had paid the money, he was surprised when a staff member told him "you have to pay 248 thousand shekels more; improvement tax, if you want to obtain the license."
Daoud said that imposing such a large amount on his father represents an obstacle that aims to prevent him from receiving the building license and thus his house will be demolished.
Ahmad's two-storey house was built in the neighborhood of Farouk in Silwan in the nineties, over an area of 191 square meters. It is inhabited by 14 individuals.
He added that when his father went to the municipality to inform them that he had paid the money, he was surprised when a staff member told him "you have to pay 248 thousand shekels more; improvement tax, if you want to obtain the license."
Daoud said that imposing such a large amount on his father represents an obstacle that aims to prevent him from receiving the building license and thus his house will be demolished.
Ahmad's two-storey house was built in the neighborhood of Farouk in Silwan in the nineties, over an area of 191 square meters. It is inhabited by 14 individuals.
Khalil Tokaji, a cartographer and expert on Israeli settlements at the Orient House institution, stated that the Israeli settlement tenders in occupied Jerusalem is part of an Israel systamatic plan to maintain overall control over the city.
He confirmed that Israeli settlement schemes dated back to 1994 that aim to establish 58 thousands housing units till 2030 in order to fully annex Jerusalem to Israel.
The Israeli authorities are working to escalate settlement construction in order to double settlers' number to reach half a million in Jerusalem and to flood West Bank with a million of settlers till 2030, he added.
He pointed out that Israeli plan aims to annex 10% of West Bank in order to expand Jerusalem settlements, saying that Israel does not recognize a Palestinian state on the basis of the 1967 borders. Israeli policy also aims to decrease the Palestinian population in Jerusalem to 12%, he added.
He quoted Israeli mayor as saying that 70 thousands of Jerusalemites who live beyond the Wall, northern Jerusalem ad Shufat camp, will be annexed to West Bank and in danger of losing their Jerusalem residency.
He warned of the seriousness of Netanyahu's recent remarks regarding the expansion of settlements on religious basis, saying that this plan aims to establish settlers' self-rule in West Bank.
Netanyahu is saying that President Mahmoud Abbas is racist since he refuses to accept settler presence in the West Bank. In fact, this is contrary to his strategy that aims to end the Palestinian presence in Jerusalem and the West Bank and to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state, he said.
He pointed out that the number of settlers in the year 1992 was 105 thousand, while today it reached 380 thousand settlers in the West Bank and 250 thousand others in Jerusalem, and added that this increase in the settlers' number is part of an Israeli plan put in 1979 that aims to reach one million settlers in the West and Jerusalem in the year 2030 in order to prevent the establishment of the Palestinian state.
He confirmed that Israeli settlement schemes dated back to 1994 that aim to establish 58 thousands housing units till 2030 in order to fully annex Jerusalem to Israel.
The Israeli authorities are working to escalate settlement construction in order to double settlers' number to reach half a million in Jerusalem and to flood West Bank with a million of settlers till 2030, he added.
He pointed out that Israeli plan aims to annex 10% of West Bank in order to expand Jerusalem settlements, saying that Israel does not recognize a Palestinian state on the basis of the 1967 borders. Israeli policy also aims to decrease the Palestinian population in Jerusalem to 12%, he added.
He quoted Israeli mayor as saying that 70 thousands of Jerusalemites who live beyond the Wall, northern Jerusalem ad Shufat camp, will be annexed to West Bank and in danger of losing their Jerusalem residency.
He warned of the seriousness of Netanyahu's recent remarks regarding the expansion of settlements on religious basis, saying that this plan aims to establish settlers' self-rule in West Bank.
Netanyahu is saying that President Mahmoud Abbas is racist since he refuses to accept settler presence in the West Bank. In fact, this is contrary to his strategy that aims to end the Palestinian presence in Jerusalem and the West Bank and to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state, he said.
He pointed out that the number of settlers in the year 1992 was 105 thousand, while today it reached 380 thousand settlers in the West Bank and 250 thousand others in Jerusalem, and added that this increase in the settlers' number is part of an Israeli plan put in 1979 that aims to reach one million settlers in the West and Jerusalem in the year 2030 in order to prevent the establishment of the Palestinian state.
20 feb 2014
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Calantha Marie/PNN Exclusive
Palestine News Network (PNN) met the Mousa family yesterday afternoon on the sunny hillside of their home between al-Khader and Batir village to hear the story of Ali Saleem Mousa about his two homes that have been demolished four times over the past three decades. Ali Saleem Mousa owns 30 dunams situated on both sides of the Israeli security wall. He lives with his two wives and nearly 20 children on the property that has been in his family for 11 generations counting down to his grandchildren. He is forbidden to work his land that is on the Israeli side of the wall, and Palestinians who are caught, as well as their donkeys, are known to be beaten viciously by |
the soldiers. He makes the journey anyways with his donkey Hamis, a trip that now takes an hour to circumvent the wall compared to the 7 minute walk before the security wall was built. Saleem has a well for water and a multitude of plants that he cares for, and commented that his presence on his land often seems to terrify the local settlers.
His story of the demolitions of his home begins in 1985 when he began construction of two homes on the top of the mountain of his property. Saleem stated that ever since then, every room, every step, every new development on his property earns a new demolition order.
The first demolition came in 1988, and both homes were torn to the ground. His family rebuilt them again immediately in the exact same locations.
In the months between 1999 and 2000, the Israeli army built a military camp right next door to the family's homes, and one afternoon they arrested the entire family and placed them inside the military camp while bulldozers came and demolished both houses again. The family returned to rebuild, and the children use the abandonded military camp as a sort of play area.
In 2004, another demolition order came, and Saleem went to court to fight the decision. Despite his determination for the court to revoke the decision, for the third time, both homes were demolished. Once again, the family rebuilt both homes.
In 2010, the military closed the area surrounding the Mousa's home and others in the immediate vicinity. The family's lawyer arrived to negotiate and discuss with the army, and his arguments were mostly ignored, but only one home was demolished this time. The deputy mayor of the al-Khader municipality told PNN that at this point, he rented a bulldozer himself to help remove the rubble of the previous home so that the area could be cleared to once again begin reconstruction. For the subsequent weeks, 2-3 jeeps of the army, police, and civil administration came to the site of the reconstruction to steal materials and machines. Saleem told us that they put him in jail, and made him pay fines in order the get the equipment and materials returned.
He also recalled circumstances where international organization, the Red Cross, gave the family tents in which to live, which were saunas in the summer and freezers in the winter. However, these tents were eventually confiscated by the army, because they did not offer a nice view to settlers enjoying the snow. Saleem was forced to pay the rent for the space where they kept the tents in order to get them back.
In 2012, the family received a new demolition order for their homes, but thus far nothing has been done.
Saleem went on to tell PNN of various injustices faced by him and his family over the years. He told us that the Palestinian Authority and various representatives had offered to pay for materials to aid in the reconstruction of his home. He went to the supply stores and wrote checks for the materials, but soon realized that the money never transferred from the PA, and the checks he had written to the local supply stores bounced. He was sent to jail in Palestine. He stated that it seems crazy that he has been in Israeli jail for working the land he is forbidden to, and in Palestinian jail for money concerns for what he thought had been donated to his cause. One of his eldest sons showed PNN the bag in which they have kept the documents of fines paid, receipts that demand payment, demolition orders and photographs of the history of each home. He explained that the bag is worth over 300 000 shekels that his family has paid since 1985 in unjust and inexplicable costs. These include being forced to pay for the bulldozers that demolished their homes, money for the workers and soldiers that participated, and the fees demanded to reacquire stolen materials, machines, tents etc.
Saleem stated that he sees it as little cost to lose his house, the blocks and concrete and belongings, but he is ready to give his life for his land. He explained his plans to build a cemetery on the land vacated by the army where the military camp was built. He has such a strong connection to his land, as demonstrated by his refusal to leave and commitment to rebuilding again and again. He said that after he dies, he will still remain on his land, as will the rest of his family.
Saleem expressed distain for the people moving into the Jewish settlements who argue that they have a right to the land. Once again he told PNN of his family living there for 11 generations, with a strong culture, history, and legacy on this land for centuries. He argued that the settlers have nothing; that they come in and take the culture and history that exists and make it their own. He is teaching his children to resist and continue to fight for their family's land, and to believe that like clouds, the settlers will eventually drift away and leave. He stressed that this is not empty land, despite the occupation's mission to create land without people. The more martyrs, injured and displaced people that the army creates only fuels the drive of the Palestinian people to fight for their rights. Saleem asked us which religious text mandates such treatment of a population? Which prophet called for these actions? He told PNN that every single Palestinian family is suffering from the occupation; the same pain is felt from the same occupation. He also thanked and expressed his gratitude that his people feel towards those who come to listen and retell the stories of his people. They want peace and justice and pray that someday these hopes will become reality for his family and every other Palestinian family.
His story of the demolitions of his home begins in 1985 when he began construction of two homes on the top of the mountain of his property. Saleem stated that ever since then, every room, every step, every new development on his property earns a new demolition order.
The first demolition came in 1988, and both homes were torn to the ground. His family rebuilt them again immediately in the exact same locations.
In the months between 1999 and 2000, the Israeli army built a military camp right next door to the family's homes, and one afternoon they arrested the entire family and placed them inside the military camp while bulldozers came and demolished both houses again. The family returned to rebuild, and the children use the abandonded military camp as a sort of play area.
In 2004, another demolition order came, and Saleem went to court to fight the decision. Despite his determination for the court to revoke the decision, for the third time, both homes were demolished. Once again, the family rebuilt both homes.
In 2010, the military closed the area surrounding the Mousa's home and others in the immediate vicinity. The family's lawyer arrived to negotiate and discuss with the army, and his arguments were mostly ignored, but only one home was demolished this time. The deputy mayor of the al-Khader municipality told PNN that at this point, he rented a bulldozer himself to help remove the rubble of the previous home so that the area could be cleared to once again begin reconstruction. For the subsequent weeks, 2-3 jeeps of the army, police, and civil administration came to the site of the reconstruction to steal materials and machines. Saleem told us that they put him in jail, and made him pay fines in order the get the equipment and materials returned.
He also recalled circumstances where international organization, the Red Cross, gave the family tents in which to live, which were saunas in the summer and freezers in the winter. However, these tents were eventually confiscated by the army, because they did not offer a nice view to settlers enjoying the snow. Saleem was forced to pay the rent for the space where they kept the tents in order to get them back.
In 2012, the family received a new demolition order for their homes, but thus far nothing has been done.
Saleem went on to tell PNN of various injustices faced by him and his family over the years. He told us that the Palestinian Authority and various representatives had offered to pay for materials to aid in the reconstruction of his home. He went to the supply stores and wrote checks for the materials, but soon realized that the money never transferred from the PA, and the checks he had written to the local supply stores bounced. He was sent to jail in Palestine. He stated that it seems crazy that he has been in Israeli jail for working the land he is forbidden to, and in Palestinian jail for money concerns for what he thought had been donated to his cause. One of his eldest sons showed PNN the bag in which they have kept the documents of fines paid, receipts that demand payment, demolition orders and photographs of the history of each home. He explained that the bag is worth over 300 000 shekels that his family has paid since 1985 in unjust and inexplicable costs. These include being forced to pay for the bulldozers that demolished their homes, money for the workers and soldiers that participated, and the fees demanded to reacquire stolen materials, machines, tents etc.
Saleem stated that he sees it as little cost to lose his house, the blocks and concrete and belongings, but he is ready to give his life for his land. He explained his plans to build a cemetery on the land vacated by the army where the military camp was built. He has such a strong connection to his land, as demonstrated by his refusal to leave and commitment to rebuilding again and again. He said that after he dies, he will still remain on his land, as will the rest of his family.
Saleem expressed distain for the people moving into the Jewish settlements who argue that they have a right to the land. Once again he told PNN of his family living there for 11 generations, with a strong culture, history, and legacy on this land for centuries. He argued that the settlers have nothing; that they come in and take the culture and history that exists and make it their own. He is teaching his children to resist and continue to fight for their family's land, and to believe that like clouds, the settlers will eventually drift away and leave. He stressed that this is not empty land, despite the occupation's mission to create land without people. The more martyrs, injured and displaced people that the army creates only fuels the drive of the Palestinian people to fight for their rights. Saleem asked us which religious text mandates such treatment of a population? Which prophet called for these actions? He told PNN that every single Palestinian family is suffering from the occupation; the same pain is felt from the same occupation. He also thanked and expressed his gratitude that his people feel towards those who come to listen and retell the stories of his people. They want peace and justice and pray that someday these hopes will become reality for his family and every other Palestinian family.
Haaretz newspaper revealed Thursday an increase in home demolitions in Jerusalem since the beginning of this year. The Israeli occupation's jerusalem municipality demolished 12 populated buildings in just two months this year, compared to 25 buildings demolished through 2013.
Israeli officials attributed this rise in demolitions to the absence of he political pressure on the Israeli government since the beginning of negotiation with the Palestinian Authority .
"The calm in Jerusalem can lead to the demolition easily," They said.
Haaretz reported a testimony from a Jerusalem family that the Israeli bulldozers destroyed their home in Silwan neighborhood.
The family was evacuated from the house and they were not allowed to take their belongings and didn't even let the mother to dress her children in this cold weather.
Israeli police stormed a home belong to Mohamed sahur at 6:00 am along with sniffer dogs and frightened he children.
They added that the occupation police beat the family father when he was trying to calm his frightened children.
The mother, a Jew who converted to Islam after marrying Sawaher, said she has never thought that she would be treated in this brutal way, especially as she had served in the Israeli army in the past. Today, the family lives in a tent provided by the ICRC.
Israeli officials attributed this rise in demolitions to the absence of he political pressure on the Israeli government since the beginning of negotiation with the Palestinian Authority .
"The calm in Jerusalem can lead to the demolition easily," They said.
Haaretz reported a testimony from a Jerusalem family that the Israeli bulldozers destroyed their home in Silwan neighborhood.
The family was evacuated from the house and they were not allowed to take their belongings and didn't even let the mother to dress her children in this cold weather.
Israeli police stormed a home belong to Mohamed sahur at 6:00 am along with sniffer dogs and frightened he children.
They added that the occupation police beat the family father when he was trying to calm his frightened children.
The mother, a Jew who converted to Islam after marrying Sawaher, said she has never thought that she would be treated in this brutal way, especially as she had served in the Israeli army in the past. Today, the family lives in a tent provided by the ICRC.
Israeli soldiers manning a checkpoint south of Bethlehem seized a large sum of money from a Palestinian after stopping and searching his car, security sources said Thursday.
They said Faisal Badarin, 36, was stopped at a flying checkpoint at the southern entrance of al-Khader where soldiers confiscated 5,000 Jordanian dinars (app. $7,000) and an additional 5,000 Israeli shekels (app. $1,400) he had on him.
They said Faisal Badarin, 36, was stopped at a flying checkpoint at the southern entrance of al-Khader where soldiers confiscated 5,000 Jordanian dinars (app. $7,000) and an additional 5,000 Israeli shekels (app. $1,400) he had on him.
19 feb 2014
Israeli settlers invaded the al-Khader town, south of the West Bank city of Bethlehem, and demolished a historic Palestinian barn.
Ahmad Salah, coordinator of the Popular Committee against the Wall and Settlements in al-Khader, said that the settlers demolished the barn, located in Ein al-Qassis area, west of al-Khader.
The barn is more than a 100 years old, and belongs to resident Riyadh Daoud Salah.
It is located close to Daniel illegitimate settlement, and the Boaz illegal settlement outpost, the Palestinian News & Info Agency (WAFA) has reported.
Salah said Palestinian lands and property close to Israel’s illegal settlements are subject to ongoing attacks by extremist settlers.
The attacks include demolishing and destroying hothouses, agricultural buildings, cutting and uprooting trees, in addition to flooding Palestinian orchards and lands with sewage.
Salah said the settlers are trying to remove the Palestinians from their lands, in order to build and expand their illegitimate settlements and outposts.
Ahmad Salah, coordinator of the Popular Committee against the Wall and Settlements in al-Khader, said that the settlers demolished the barn, located in Ein al-Qassis area, west of al-Khader.
The barn is more than a 100 years old, and belongs to resident Riyadh Daoud Salah.
It is located close to Daniel illegitimate settlement, and the Boaz illegal settlement outpost, the Palestinian News & Info Agency (WAFA) has reported.
Salah said Palestinian lands and property close to Israel’s illegal settlements are subject to ongoing attacks by extremist settlers.
The attacks include demolishing and destroying hothouses, agricultural buildings, cutting and uprooting trees, in addition to flooding Palestinian orchards and lands with sewage.
Salah said the settlers are trying to remove the Palestinians from their lands, in order to build and expand their illegitimate settlements and outposts.
The Israeli supreme court in occupied Jerusalem declined a petition filed by a Palestinian family from Al-Khalil city about their ownership of a 300-dunum land taken by force by Jewish settlers. According to Haaretz newspaper on Wednesday, the court justified its rejection by saying that the Palestinian-owned land had been seized long ago, so it would be impossible now to compel the Israeli army and its civil administration to take action against the settlers in question.
In another incident, the same newspaper said that Israeli minister of housing Uri Ariel prepared a plan to build a residential outpost consisting of 2,250 housing units in Ein Karem neighborhood in occupied Jerusalem.
It added that the ministry of housing intends to transfer the ownership of the Palestinian lands, which the project will be built on, to the Israeli government.
It noted that the Israel land authority would market for the building of these units.
In another incident, the same newspaper said that Israeli minister of housing Uri Ariel prepared a plan to build a residential outpost consisting of 2,250 housing units in Ein Karem neighborhood in occupied Jerusalem.
It added that the ministry of housing intends to transfer the ownership of the Palestinian lands, which the project will be built on, to the Israeli government.
It noted that the Israel land authority would market for the building of these units.
18 feb 2014
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Clashes broke out in East Jerusalem neighborhoods on Feb. 5 as Israeli bulldozers demolished five Palestinian homes.
Video footage shows Israeli police hurling tear gas canisters at Palestinian protesters, who throw rocks in response as houses crumble to the ground in the background. On the day of the demolitions, Israel announced plans to construct over 550 new settler homes in East Jerusalem. Israel destroyed more than 663 Palestinian properties in the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 2013, displacing 1,101 people, according to UNOCHA. |
Israel rarely grants Palestinians permits to build in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. It has demolished at least 27,000 Palestinian homes and structures since occupying the West Bank in 1967, according to the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions.
Israeli military vehicles and bulldozers entered a border area in the southern Gaza Strip on Tuesday, witnesses said.
Locals told Ma'an that four bulldozers escorted by military tanks entered an area east of the village of Khuzaa in Khan Younis district for 100 meters and leveled private Palestinian land.
Israeli forces fired smoke bombs in the area forcing local farmers to leave their fields.
Israel's military did not immediately return calls seeking comment.
Locals told Ma'an that four bulldozers escorted by military tanks entered an area east of the village of Khuzaa in Khan Younis district for 100 meters and leveled private Palestinian land.
Israeli forces fired smoke bombs in the area forcing local farmers to leave their fields.
Israel's military did not immediately return calls seeking comment.
17 feb 2014
The Ayyad family, who owns Cliff Hotel located in Abu Dis to the southeast of Jerusalem, managed on Sunday to stop the construction of a stretch in the segregation wall near the hotel, which if completed would have rendered that property under Israeli control, according to Wadi Hilweh Information Center. The center said the Ayyad family had to go to court to stop the construction after the army placed large cement blocks near the hotel to build the section of wall left unfinished when the family contested the route in court.
The family says Israel wants to build the wall around the hotel to incorporate it into the Jerusalem side and eventually take it over for settlement purposes.
It tried several attempts to take over the hotel claiming at one point that it was absentee property because the owners live in the West Bank.
The family says the Israeli High Court has not yet ruled on the route and therefore the unfinished section cannot be completed before then.
The hotel is currently used as a border police base after Israel took it over on security claims.
The family is trying to regain control of the hotel, which suffered extensive damage after it was taken over by the border police.
The family says Israel wants to build the wall around the hotel to incorporate it into the Jerusalem side and eventually take it over for settlement purposes.
It tried several attempts to take over the hotel claiming at one point that it was absentee property because the owners live in the West Bank.
The family says the Israeli High Court has not yet ruled on the route and therefore the unfinished section cannot be completed before then.
The hotel is currently used as a border police base after Israel took it over on security claims.
The family is trying to regain control of the hotel, which suffered extensive damage after it was taken over by the border police.
Dozens of Israeli vehicles have Monday carried out a limited incursion into the area of Erez crossing coincided with intensive drone flights over northern Gaza Strip. Local sources reported that four Israeli bulldozers and a tank moved 30 meters toward the area covered by drones before withdrawing.
The Israeli bulldozers carried out leveling operations. No firings were reported.
Similar incursions take place almost daily in the eastern and northern borders of the Gaza Strip in a clear violation of the cease-fire- agreement that Israel signed with the Palestinian resistance and brokered by Egypt in November 2013.
The Israeli bulldozers carried out leveling operations. No firings were reported.
Similar incursions take place almost daily in the eastern and northern borders of the Gaza Strip in a clear violation of the cease-fire- agreement that Israel signed with the Palestinian resistance and brokered by Egypt in November 2013.
The Israeli forces demolished Monday agricultural structures, homes and animal barns in Khirbet Yerza in the Jordan Valley, a local resident said.
Israeli army bulldozers protected by a large force demolished three homes and two animal barns while the soldiers seized a number of tents and a tractor used by the residents for plowing and irrigation, said Mukhlis Masaeed.
Yerza, he said, is regularly targeted by the Israeli military authorities to empty it of its original residents.The demolition displaced five families, said Masaeed. Governor of Tubas and the Northern Jordan Valley, Rabih Khandakji, denounced the large-scale demolition.
“No force on earth could uproot or force the Palestinians out from their lands where they have been dwelling for centuries to pave the way for settlement construction,” he said.
Structures of Khirbet Yerza, including homes, barns and the area mosque, had been demolished many times by the Israeli military forces.
Israeli army bulldozers protected by a large force demolished three homes and two animal barns while the soldiers seized a number of tents and a tractor used by the residents for plowing and irrigation, said Mukhlis Masaeed.
Yerza, he said, is regularly targeted by the Israeli military authorities to empty it of its original residents.The demolition displaced five families, said Masaeed. Governor of Tubas and the Northern Jordan Valley, Rabih Khandakji, denounced the large-scale demolition.
“No force on earth could uproot or force the Palestinians out from their lands where they have been dwelling for centuries to pave the way for settlement construction,” he said.
Structures of Khirbet Yerza, including homes, barns and the area mosque, had been demolished many times by the Israeli military forces.
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Israeli forces on Monday bulldozed five steel structures belonging to a Palestinian community in the East Jerusalem town of al-Eizariya, locals said.
A large group of Israeli forces raided the town after midnight and surrounded steel structures belonging to the Bedouin al-Jahalin community. Israeli soldiers forcibly evicted five families from the structures, leaving 55 people homeless, Sami Abu Ghaliya, a spokesman of the al-Jahalin tribe council, told Ma'an. The demolitions took place without giving residents time to gather their belongings. The structures housed a greengrocers and a car wash which provided the main source of income for the community. |
"They want to displace us and leave us homeless as they did to us in the Nakba of 1948 and the Naksa of 1967," Abu Ghaliya said.
"We have been living on this land since more than 60 years."
Israel is planning to displace the al-Jahalin tribe to build part of its separation wall in the area, a spokesman of the Palestinian youth movement in East Jerusalem, Hani Halabiyya, told Ma'an.
In the 1950s, the al-Jahalin community was forcibly displaced from its ancestral home in the Negev desert and resettled east of Jerusalem.
Israeli forces displaced groups of the community in the 1990s to make way for the Maale Adumim settlement.
"We have been living on this land since more than 60 years."
Israel is planning to displace the al-Jahalin tribe to build part of its separation wall in the area, a spokesman of the Palestinian youth movement in East Jerusalem, Hani Halabiyya, told Ma'an.
In the 1950s, the al-Jahalin community was forcibly displaced from its ancestral home in the Negev desert and resettled east of Jerusalem.
Israeli forces displaced groups of the community in the 1990s to make way for the Maale Adumim settlement.
On Tuesday 18th February 2014, at 7:00 PM, AICafe invites you for the Israeli land grab and forced population transfer of Palestinians with Amjad Al-Qasis.
Policies of land grab and forcible transfer of the Palestinian population are central to Israel's continued colonialism and occupation. Come discuss these crucial policies to better understand – and struggle against – Israeli apartheid.
Amjad Al-Qasis is a legal researcher and the legal program advocacy coordinator at Badil: Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights.
Come learn about this crucial topic!
The AIC is a joint Palestinian-Israeli activist organization engaged in dissemination of information, political advocacy and grassroots activism. The AICafè is a political and cultural café open on Tuesday and Saturday night from 7pm until 10pm. It is located in the Alternative Information Center in Beit Sahour, close to Suq Sha'ab (follow the sign to Jadal Center ). We have a small library with novels, political books and magazines.
We also have a number of films in DVD copies and AIC publications which critically analyze both the Palestinian and Israeli societies as well as the conflict itself.
Policies of land grab and forcible transfer of the Palestinian population are central to Israel's continued colonialism and occupation. Come discuss these crucial policies to better understand – and struggle against – Israeli apartheid.
Amjad Al-Qasis is a legal researcher and the legal program advocacy coordinator at Badil: Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights.
Come learn about this crucial topic!
The AIC is a joint Palestinian-Israeli activist organization engaged in dissemination of information, political advocacy and grassroots activism. The AICafè is a political and cultural café open on Tuesday and Saturday night from 7pm until 10pm. It is located in the Alternative Information Center in Beit Sahour, close to Suq Sha'ab (follow the sign to Jadal Center ). We have a small library with novels, political books and magazines.
We also have a number of films in DVD copies and AIC publications which critically analyze both the Palestinian and Israeli societies as well as the conflict itself.
16 feb 2014
Anticipating a negative decision by the Israeli Supreme Court, Israeli authorities on Sunday started to build a section of its separation wall around a hotel in East Jerusalem.
Locals told Ma’an that bulldozers escorted by large numbers of Israeli troops arrived in the morning and started to erect a wall made of huge T-shaped concrete blocks around the Cliff Hotel.
The hotel will be separated from the East Jerusalem Palestinian town of Abu Dis to be eventually confiscated under Israel’s law of absentee property.
The Cliff Hotel is a four-floor building 50 meters from the Palestinian parliament in Abu Dis.
Its original owners are members of the Ayad family, have been waging a legal battle to stop construction of the stretch of the separation wall around the hotel. All the owners hold Palestinian identity cards.
Since 1996, the Israeli authorities have been trying to confiscate the hotel and take control of it for several reasons, says lawyer Bassam Bahar who has been defending Palestinian lands in Abu Dis.
He highlighted that the Israelis claimed the hotel belonged to a Jewish family and would be annexed under absentee property law. Sometimes, they cite security pretexts to confiscate the hotel, he added.
The lawyer highlighted that the Israeli authorities started construction work around the Cliff Sunday morning because they anticipate the Supreme Court to rule against an alternative route. He added that the Israeli attorney general had decided that the hotel was not an absentee property.
Locals told Ma’an that bulldozers escorted by large numbers of Israeli troops arrived in the morning and started to erect a wall made of huge T-shaped concrete blocks around the Cliff Hotel.
The hotel will be separated from the East Jerusalem Palestinian town of Abu Dis to be eventually confiscated under Israel’s law of absentee property.
The Cliff Hotel is a four-floor building 50 meters from the Palestinian parliament in Abu Dis.
Its original owners are members of the Ayad family, have been waging a legal battle to stop construction of the stretch of the separation wall around the hotel. All the owners hold Palestinian identity cards.
Since 1996, the Israeli authorities have been trying to confiscate the hotel and take control of it for several reasons, says lawyer Bassam Bahar who has been defending Palestinian lands in Abu Dis.
He highlighted that the Israelis claimed the hotel belonged to a Jewish family and would be annexed under absentee property law. Sometimes, they cite security pretexts to confiscate the hotel, he added.
The lawyer highlighted that the Israeli authorities started construction work around the Cliff Sunday morning because they anticipate the Supreme Court to rule against an alternative route. He added that the Israeli attorney general had decided that the hotel was not an absentee property.
Israeli forces confiscated Palestinian land in the northern West Bank on Sunday, a Palestinian official said.
Ghassan Daghlas, a Palestinian Authority official who monitors settlement activity in the northern West Bank, told Ma'an that the Israeli Civil Administration seized four dunams (one acre) of land in the al-Wafra area between the villages of Burin, Tal, and Madma south of Nablus.
The confiscation will prevent Palestinian residents from reaching 300 dunams (74 acres) of their land, Daghlas said, without elaborating.
The internationally recognized Palestinian territories of which the West Bank and East Jerusalem form a part have been occupied by the Israeli military since 1967.
Ghassan Daghlas, a Palestinian Authority official who monitors settlement activity in the northern West Bank, told Ma'an that the Israeli Civil Administration seized four dunams (one acre) of land in the al-Wafra area between the villages of Burin, Tal, and Madma south of Nablus.
The confiscation will prevent Palestinian residents from reaching 300 dunams (74 acres) of their land, Daghlas said, without elaborating.
The internationally recognized Palestinian territories of which the West Bank and East Jerusalem form a part have been occupied by the Israeli military since 1967.
Human rights lawyers want the police to launch a criminal probe on suspicion that various purchases have been forged.
The real estate purchasing arm of Amana, a cooperative that builds houses in West Bank settlements, bought parts of a disputed area in the Beit El settlement from a man who had died years before, local Palestinians say.
The allegation is detailed in documents sent to the police in a request to investigate the purchasing arm, Al-Watan. In the summer of 2012, five buildings in Beit El’s Ulpana neighborhood were demolished following a petition to the High Court of Justice by Palestinians who owned the two lots at the site.
Last week Israeli army radio reported that Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon had given Al-Watan a permit to register parts of one of the lots under its name.
Al-Watan’s main owner is an Amana subsidiary, Binyanei Bar Amana. Al-Watan seeks to buy land in settlements where High Court petitions by Palestinians are pending; this would obviate the need to evacuate those lands. Al-Watan’s directors are Ze’ev “ Zambish” Hever, a longtime leader of the settlement enterprise, Amana’s treasurer Moshe Yogev, and an Amana employee, Hananya Nahliel.
Hever declined to comment for this article. Al-Watan has claimed that it bought a Palestinian house on the outskirts of the settlement of Ofra, but the district court ruled that the deal was forged. Al-Watan also says it bought land at Giv’at Asaf, Amona and Migron. All of these transactions are being investigated by the police.
Regarding the Ulpana neighborhood, documents submitted by attorneys Michael Sfard and Shlomi Zacharia, who are representing the petitioners for human rights group Yesh Din, raise questions on the legitimacy of the Al-Watan purchases. In January last year, a front man allegedly bought the land on which Ulpana sits from its Palestinians owners. A few months later the man allegedly passed the land on to Al-Watan.
But according to the documents submitted by Sfard and Zacharia, the man stipulated had died years before. In June, the man allegedly bought land in another part of Ulpana, from a different Palestinian. But according to the documents, this Palestinian lives in Jordan and says no one ever approached him about the land. Sfard and Zacharia want the police to launch a criminal probe on suspicion the purchases were forged.
This is not the first time Amana and its subsidiaries have claimed ownership of land in the Ulpana neighborhood. Amana has said that in 2000 it bought land at the site, but after the police determined that the purchase was fraudulent, the land was not transferred to Amana’s name. In 2011, Amana claimed in district court that it owned a lot in Ulpana, in an effort to obstruct the evacuation of the neighborhood. The court rejected the claim.
Source: HAARETZ
The real estate purchasing arm of Amana, a cooperative that builds houses in West Bank settlements, bought parts of a disputed area in the Beit El settlement from a man who had died years before, local Palestinians say.
The allegation is detailed in documents sent to the police in a request to investigate the purchasing arm, Al-Watan. In the summer of 2012, five buildings in Beit El’s Ulpana neighborhood were demolished following a petition to the High Court of Justice by Palestinians who owned the two lots at the site.
Last week Israeli army radio reported that Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon had given Al-Watan a permit to register parts of one of the lots under its name.
Al-Watan’s main owner is an Amana subsidiary, Binyanei Bar Amana. Al-Watan seeks to buy land in settlements where High Court petitions by Palestinians are pending; this would obviate the need to evacuate those lands. Al-Watan’s directors are Ze’ev “ Zambish” Hever, a longtime leader of the settlement enterprise, Amana’s treasurer Moshe Yogev, and an Amana employee, Hananya Nahliel.
Hever declined to comment for this article. Al-Watan has claimed that it bought a Palestinian house on the outskirts of the settlement of Ofra, but the district court ruled that the deal was forged. Al-Watan also says it bought land at Giv’at Asaf, Amona and Migron. All of these transactions are being investigated by the police.
Regarding the Ulpana neighborhood, documents submitted by attorneys Michael Sfard and Shlomi Zacharia, who are representing the petitioners for human rights group Yesh Din, raise questions on the legitimacy of the Al-Watan purchases. In January last year, a front man allegedly bought the land on which Ulpana sits from its Palestinians owners. A few months later the man allegedly passed the land on to Al-Watan.
But according to the documents submitted by Sfard and Zacharia, the man stipulated had died years before. In June, the man allegedly bought land in another part of Ulpana, from a different Palestinian. But according to the documents, this Palestinian lives in Jordan and says no one ever approached him about the land. Sfard and Zacharia want the police to launch a criminal probe on suspicion the purchases were forged.
This is not the first time Amana and its subsidiaries have claimed ownership of land in the Ulpana neighborhood. Amana has said that in 2000 it bought land at the site, but after the police determined that the purchase was fraudulent, the land was not transferred to Amana’s name. In 2011, Amana claimed in district court that it owned a lot in Ulpana, in an effort to obstruct the evacuation of the neighborhood. The court rejected the claim.
Source: HAARETZ
