May: Arresting 112 Jerusalemites…demolishing 8 establishments…continuing to detain the bodies of 6 Martyrs
Wadi Hilweh Information Center issued its monthly report in which it monitored the Israeli violations in the city of Jerusalem during May 2016 as the Israeli authorities continued their assaults on Jerusalemites, their property and sanctities.
The center explained in its report that 850 Israelis broke into the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque during May while 13 Palestinians were isolated from it. The forces arrested 112 Jerusalemites and demolished 8 establishments while still detaining bodies of 6 Jerusalemite Martyrs.
Al-Aqsa Mosque
The center explained that settlers continued breaking into the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque on a daily basis during last May. Break-ins occur through Dung Gate which is controlled by the Israeli authorities since the occupation of Jerusalem and it is divided into two sessions; morning and afternoon. It is part of the “foreign tourism” program and takes place under the protection of Israeli police and Special Forces.
During May, 850 Israeli settlers and Jewish students broke into Al-Aqsa Mosque. Among them was Yehuda Glick who is currently a member of the Israeli Knesset representing the "Likud” party. The police also continued to place barriers at Al-Aqsa Gates and continued holding the IDs of Muslims entering the Mosque.
The occupation authorities isolated 13 Jerusalemites from Al-Aqsa Mosque for durations that varied between two weeks and 60 days; among those isolated were 4 elderly; 2 women and a minor.
Arrests
The occupation authorities also continued their series of arrests in Jerusalem during May. The center monitored the arrest of 112 Jerusalem including 10 females (2 minors); three children aged 12-14 and 43 minors.
The geographical distribution for arrests was as follows: Esawyeh 925), Silwan (21), Old City of Jerusalem (21), Al-Tur (12), Jabal Al-Mukabber (7), Kufor Aqab and Beit Hanina and Wadi Al-Joz (3 each), Al-Sowaneh and Sur Baher (2 each), Sheikh Jarrah (1) and several other arrests from the streets of Jerusalem and at Al-Aqsa Gates.
The occupation authorities deported two young men from the city of Jerusalem for 30 days.
They also isolated 36-year old Rania Abbasi to the West Bank under the pretext of illegally staying in Jerusalem. Rania holds a West Bank ID and doesn’t have a permit to enter Jerusalem. She is the wife of Jerusalemite prisoner Ala’ Eddin Abbasi who has been arrested since 2002 and is sentenced to 66 years in prison. She has three children; Safa’ (19), Sara (17) and Omar (14).
Demolishing 8 establishments
The occupation authorities continued its policy of demolishing residential establishments in the city of Jerusalem and demolishing 8 establishments during May. They demolished 3 residential houses, an under-construction building, a room, parts of an under-construction house and two warehouses; two establishments were self-demolished by their owners following an order from the occupation municipality.
The occupation displaced 31 individuals in May after the occupation bulldozers under the supervision of the so-called “Nature and Parks Authority” demolished two homes in the neighborhood of Al-Sowaneh east of the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem. The houses are owned by Totah and Tutanji families and were demolished under the pretext of “unlicensed building” on lands classified as “national parks”.
The bulldozers also demolished the house of Hawareen family in the neighborhood of Shu’fat north of Jerusalem for the purpose of opening a settlement street (Street 21) to connect the settlements of Ramat Shlomo and Pisgat Ze’ev; the house has been established since 2001.
The geographical distribution of the demolitions was as follows: Silwan (3), Esawyeh (2), Al-Sowaneh (2) and one in Shu’fat.
Detaining the bodies of Jerusalemite Martyrs
The occupation authorities continue to detain the bodies of 6 Jerusalemite Martyrs part of the collective punishment policy practiced against their families since the first moments of the Martyrdom of their sons. Thaer Abu Ghazaleh and Baha’ Alayan passed away last October, Abdel Muhsen Hassouneh (December) (22), Mohammad Abu Khalaf (February), Mohammad Jamal Kaloti and Abdullah Saleh Khroub (March). The Martyrs are from the Old City of Jerusalem, Jabal Al-Mukabber, Beit Hanina and Kufor Aqab.
Last month, the occupation authorities released the bodies of 6 Martyrs to their families under strict conditions and ordered them to immediately bury the bodies except for the body of Fouad Abu Rajab who was released in the West Bank. It is noteworthy that the Israeli Supreme Court had recommended releasing the Martyrs’ bodies before the month of Ramadan.
Despite the families’ commitment to the rules imposed on them, the Israeli Minister of Internal Security, Gilad Ardan, ordered the police to stop releasing the bodies of Palestinian Martyrs under the pretext of violating the rules during the funeral of Martyr Ala’ Abu Jamal in the village of Jabal Al-Mukabber.
Settlement
In the wake of the settlement attack against the houses of the Old City of Jerusalem, the Israeli Supreme Court ratified the decision of evacuating Mazen Qirresh and his family from their home in the Old City of Jerusalem claiming the that “fourth generation” is no longer a protected tenant. The house is at risk of being evacuated in favor of “Ateerat Cohanim” settlement organization.
The settlers also seized a huge building that overlooks the Old City of Jerusalem. The building consists of several rooms in Al-Sa’dyeh neighborhood in the Old City and is owned by “Yozbashi” family.
The Magistrate court also issued a decision to evacuate a property in the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah owned by Kiswani family under the pretext of being owned by the “guardian of public property”. The property is build on a 250-square meters land and consists of three residential houses, Omega Learning Institute and a coffee shop; the family received the eviction notice issued by the court.
The occupation authorities also confiscated a 3 Dunom land (3000 square meters) owned by Abu Ta’a and Siam families in the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah. They turned the property to “Amana” company which works on establishing settlements and settlement outposts.
