July 2023 in Jerusalem
The occupation authorities, with their various institutions, and the "alleged Temple" groups, continued to carry out attacks and violations in the city of Jerusalem, during the month of July, as monitored by the Wadi Hilweh Information Center -Jerusalem, in its monthly report.
The Wadi Hilweh Information Center - Jerusalem said that the occupation authorities and the settlers continued the attacks on the holy places and Jerusalemites and their properties in the city during the month of July; with large incursions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque led by the ministers, in addition to continuing the arrest campaigns and demolition operations, and the issuing of deportation orders.
Al-Aqsa Mosque
The settlers' intrusions into Al-Aqsa Mosque continued, during the daily morning and afternoon intrusions, except on Fridays and Saturdays, through the Dung Gate, whose keys have been controlled by the occupation authorities since the occupation of Jerusalem.
Thousands of settlers carried out their mass incursions into Al-Aqsa during the month of July, and they performed the public and collective prayers at Al-Aqsa, specifically at the eastern area and at the gates of Al-Qatanin and Al=Silsileh gates, and the number of those who stormed Al-Aqsa doubled on the 27th of last July, in memory of the so-called "Destruction of the Temple".
The Wadi Hilweh Information Center explained in its monthly report that 2,180 extremists stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque on the anniversary of the "Destruction of the Temple", led by the Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gavir and Minister of Development of the Galilee Yitzhak Vaslerov, along with dozens of rabbis and those in charge of the "alleged Temple" organizations. The intruders performed their collective prayers and public dances during the storming of Al-Aqsa, and the number of intruders in each group exceeded 80 extremists.
On the same day, in front of the gates of Al-Aqsa Mosque "from the outside", the scene was the same, with the settlers going to all the gates, performing their collective prayers and raising the Israeli flag, and sitting on the thresholds of Al-Aqsa for hours.
While allowing the storming of Al-Aqsa and the prayers on its thresholds, the occupation forces imposed restrictions on the entry of Muslims into Al-Aqsa Mosque, from the morning hours until three in the afternoon; Forbidding the young men and women and withholding their identity cards at the gates "for the few who were allowed to enter the mosque", and assaulting the worshipers during their attempt to enter Al-Aqsa to keep them away from its surroundings.
The center added that the forces stationed at the Al-Aqsa gates prevented those under the age of 60 from entering Al-Aqsa to pray in it, so the prayers were held at its thresholds, especially at Al-Majles Gate.
On the eve of the so-called "Destruction of the Temple" anniversary, the settlers organized a march that started from the Ma'man Allah area in west Jerusalem, passing through the New Gate, Damascus Gate, Herods Gate, and the Dung Gate and headed towards Al-Buraq square. The participants raised the Israeli flags, and dozens of the settlers performed their prayers at the gates Al-Aqsa Mosque from the evening hours until dawn, in addition to a large prayer in Al-Buraq square.
Last July, the occupation authorities prevented the restoration and maintenance work in Al-Aqsa Mosque, and informed the director of the "Reconstruction Committee in the Al-Aqsa Mosque" to prevent any work in the mosque, threatening to arrest any employee who does so.
Deportations
The Israeli occupation authorities continued to issue deportation orders, and the Wadi Hilweh Information Center monitored the issuance of 61 deportation orders during last July, and included deportation from “Al-Aqsa, the Old City, Sheikh Jarrah, the place of residence, the streets of Jerusalem, and banning entry to the West Bank", for periods ranging from 3 days up to 6 months.
Arrests
The Israeli authorities continued the arrest campaigns in the city of Jerusalem, and the Wadi Hilweh Information Center monitored 159 cases of arrest, and two children under the age of responsibility / under 12 years old, 28 boys, 6 females including a minor girl.
The Wadi Hilweh Information Center explained in its monthly report that among the detainees, a Palestinian woman that was arrested after shots were fired at her by one of the "light rail guards", under the pretext of "attempting to carry out a stabbing operation", and the guard assaulted her by pushing and beating her during the arrest process. The forces also arrested two of the woman’s sons and turned them to investigation.
The center added that among those arrested was the Deputy Director of the Jerusalem Endowments, Sheikh Najeh Bkeirat, who was arrested after storming his house in the village of Sur Baher, and was released on condition of deportation from the city of Jerusalem for 6 months. The occupation authorities had handed Sheikh Bkeirat a decision to deport him from the city but he refused to implement it and announced a sit-in inside his house, until he was arrested and deported from the city.
The Israeli forces also carried out arrests on the day of the announcement of the results of the "Tawjihi" high school exams in the city of Jerusalem, under the pretext of "setting off firecrackers in the streets."
The forces also arrested a young Jerusalemite man after he went to the hospital to receive treatment, after being shot in the leg. The forces stormed the hospital and handcuffed him while he was on the treatment bed.
Evacuating a house and handing it over to the settlers
On July 11th, the Israeli occupation forces evicted the Ghaith / Sub Laban family from their home in the Aqaba Al-Khaldyeh neighborhood in the Old City of Jerusalem, for the benefit of the settlers, and after about two weeks of taking control of it, the settlers emptied the contents of the house.
Regarding the property, the family explained that their house has been leased from the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan since 1953 and the family is subject to a protected tenant, and for 47 years the occupation authorities have been pursuing them in various cases. In 2010, the "Galitzia Settlement Association" began pursuing the family under the pretext that the house is a Jewish endowment, and after years in the courts the family's protected lease was terminated and they were evicted from the house.
The family pointed out that the Supreme Court had issued a decree in 2016, ordering the evacuation of the family members from the house, except for the parents "Nora and Mustafa", and therefore the court dispersed the family, preventing the children from living with their parents.
In 2019, the settlement association used a new prosecution against the family, where it delivered a "new eviction decision", under the pretext of not being permanently present in the house, and Ms. Nora pointed out that during 2018 she suffered from back pains and was unable to move and walk for 3 months and had to stay with her children during the treatment period, and despite presenting the medical documents, the Supreme Court rejected them and decided to evict the family from their home in favor of the settlers.
Demolition
Demolition operations continued in the city of Jerusalem during the month of July, and the Wadi Hilweh Information Center monitored 12 demolition operations "10 of which were carried out by the owners" to avoid paying financial fines, which is a "demolition fee for the municipal teams and vehicles and the accompanying forces".
The center explained that the demolition operations involved "houses, warehouses, a fence, and an outdoor yard belonging to a house."
A strike
On July 4th, there was a general commercial strike in the city of Jerusalem at the call of the national and Islamic forces in the city of Jerusalem, in mourning for the souls of the martyrs of the Jenin refugee camp and protesting the siege of the camp. In the afternoon hours of the same day, the forces prevented a sit-in held in Salah Al-Din Street in Jerusalem in solidarity with the people of Jenin.
Suppression
The occupation authorities continued to suppress the activities in the city of Jerusalem that condemned the Israeli measures against Jerusalemites. In Silwan, they suppressed a sit-in held in Al-Ain Street against the decisions to demolish the houses, and they also suppressed the "Friday prayer" in the Silwan tent, and deliberately threw bombs and waste water towards the worshipers during the prayer.
