During March…Arresting 185 citizens and isolating 42 Palestinians from Al-Aqsa Mosque
Wadi Hilweh Information Center-Silwan monitored the Israeli violations against Jerusalemites during the month of March as the occupation authorities’ assaults continued against Jerusalemites and their property and holy places. Arresting 185 Jerusalemites The occupation authorities carried out a wide series of arrest last month and the center monitored the arrest of nearly 185 citizens including 41 females in which four of them were minor girls, 65 minors (7 minors under the age of 12). The arrests were mostly from the neighborhood of the Old City of Jerusalem, Silwan, Al-Tur and Wad Al-Joz. The center also pointed out that the occupation authorities arrested 77 Jerusalemites during last February including 20 females and 33 minors (6 under the age of 12). Al-Aqsa Mosque The extremist group escalated their break-ins to Al-Aqsa Mosque during last month making it the month with the most break-ins since the beginning of the year. More than 1064 extremists broke into Al-Aqsa during March in addition to 73 individuals from the occupation forces and Israeli Intelligence while 654 extremists broke into Al-Aqsa in February and 657 in January. The extremist groups’ escalation coincided with a similar escalation carried out by the occupation authorities as they arrested worshippers especially females. They also arrested and assaulted minor females under the pretext of chanting “God is Great”. The occupation authorities isolated 42 citizens from Al-Aqsa Mosque (27 females, 2 girls, three boys and 15 young men) for duration that varied between 15 and 90 days; note that 21 citizens were isolated last February. The policy of detaining the IDs of women and young men at Al-Aqsa gates and replacing them with small cards that have the gate’s name continued in the month of March in an attempt to harass the Muslim worshippers intending to pray at Al-Aqsa Mosque. Demolition The occupation municipality and the so-called “Nature and Parks Authority” continued their police of demolishing establishments and rooms and sweeping lands in the city of Jerusalem in addition to hanging random demolition orders on buildings and residential establishments. During March, the occupation bulldozers demolished three barracks used for raising sheep and as storage in the village of Esawyeh, and also swept wide areas of lands. They also demolished six rooms built from bricks, a balcony and walls owned by Amro and Totah families in the neighborhood of Wad Al-Joz and demolished the foundations of three houses in the village of Jabal Al-Mukabber. The occupation also demolished a “kiosk” used for selling newspaper, books and magazines owned by Da’na family only few days after the owner Hajj Ameer Da’na passed away. The citizen Kifah Da’na executed the municipality’s order and self-demolished parts of his house in the Old City of Jerusalem under the pretext of building without a permit. In February, the municipality’s staff hung a demolition order on “Al-Sumoud” building in Sheikh Jarrah and several residential houses in Silwan. Occupation forces’ assaults against Jerusalemites and their property The occupation forces continued their assaults against Jerusalemites and for the first time they raided Al-Tur School and searched its classrooms. At the beginning of last month, one of the light rail’s guards shot Mohammad Mahmoud Salaymeh with three bullets (hand, back and left leg) and Salaymeh had to undergo 4 surgeries. He was shot under the pretext of running over female soldiers in Street number 1 in Jerusalem. The forces raided and searched his house and also interrogated several members of his family. The forces also targeted the child Yehya Abdeen with a black rubber bullet when he was standing at his house’s balcony in the neighborhood of Ras Al-Amoud. One child was assaulted by the occupation forces when she was inside the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque as she was chanting “God is Great” during the settlers’ break-ins. The occupation authorities continued harassing the “hawkers” in the streets of Jerusalem and confiscated and damaged their merchandise. The authorities also suppressed a march on “Earth Day” and assaulted the participants with sound grenades and beating. Military orders On the other hand, the occupation Intelligence handed four citizens orders banning them from traveling abroad of entering the West Bank or Jerusalem for various durations that ranged between 5 and 6 months. The Intelligence handed Chairman of the Board of Directors of Al-Dameer organization for prisoner support and human rights, Abdellatif Gheith, and the head of Jerusalemites detainees and prisoners families committee, Amjad Abu Asab, an order banning them from travelling abroad for 5 months. They also handed the freed prisoner Salah Hammouri an order preventing him from entering the West Bank for 6 months and lawyer Khaled Zabarqa an order preventing him from entering Jerusalem for 6 months. Settlers’ assaults In March, the settlement organizations attempted to confiscate a property owned by Shamasneh family in the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah and another property owned by Sub Laban family in the Old City of Jerusalem but the residents were able to confront the settlers and headed to the Israeli courts. Settlers tried to stab the young man Ahmad Abu Ta’a when he was near his house in Al-Masharef Mountain (Mount Scopus) and injured him with several wounds and bruises. Settlers also assaulted the 48-year old Ahmad Mahmud Al-Qaq while walking in Al-Sharaf neighborhood as he was heading to his house in Silwan. The settlers also took over three residential apartments and two lands owned by Al-Malhi, Sha’ban and Abbasi families through falsification of documents and buying property from some of the residents.
