Nonstop Persecution: A decision to demolish Jawad Siam's warehouse in Silwan, imposing a fine or imprisonment
The Municipal Court for Local Affairs issued a decision on Monday to demolish and close a warehouse and its annexes in the Wadi Hilweh neighborhood of Silwan.
The warehouse belongs to the Jerusalemite Jawad Siam, director of the Wadi Hilweh Information Center in Jerusalem, and has been located within the family's building since the 1970s. Siam restored the warehouse and its adjacent wall following a landslide that occurred at the site in 2014, based on official instructions from the Israeli municipality.
Attorney Sami Arshid explained that the court issued a decision to close the warehouse with bricks "for lack of use," demolish its bathrooms, and impose a fine of 15,000 shekels, payable monthly starting mid-May, or serve 35 days of imprisonment on his client, Siam. If the decision is not implemented, municipal crews will carry out the demolition and closure, with Siam liable for the "demolition fees" for the municipal crews and accompanying forces.
The court also issued a two-year suspended sentence, stipulating actual imprisonment and an additional fine, should Siam commit any "new building violations."
Jawad Siam pointed out that parts of the warehouse and the retaining wall—which separates homes from a public walkway—collapsed in 2014 as a result of ongoing Israeli excavations underneath the neighborhood. This prompted the municipality to issue instructions to remove the damage, rebuild the wall, and restore the warehouse to avoid potential future damage. The municipality considered the collapsed building to be private property, and the owner must implement the restoration order.
Siam confirmed that he carried out the necessary restoration work in the presence of supervisors from the Israeli Antiquities Department and the municipality, and that financial dues were paid for their supervision of the restoration process.
Siam explained that he was later surprised when municipal crews stormed the warehouse, accompanied by police. Measurements were taken and the site photographed, after which a demolition order was issued on the grounds of "building without a permit."
Siam confirmed that the wall was built by the municipality in the 1970s, and that the warehouse covers an area of 60 square meters. It has remained in place since that time, with no new construction added to it.
This case adds to a series of legal proceedings against the director of the Wadi Hilweh Information Center, including a demand by the municipality's lawyer/Arnona Department last August for payment of 356,000 shekels for four properties in Silwan, alleging that debts had accumulated since 2016, despite Siam's assertion that he did not own these properties or know their locations.
The municipality, through its Arnona Department, continues to claim that Siam owns seven additional properties in Silwan, without providing a precise identification of them. It also claims that some of these properties are commercial properties, which doubles the tax burden on them.
In July 2024, the Israeli Municipal Court issued another order to demolish the Wadi Hilweh Information Center headquarters on the grounds of "unlicensed construction." The court gave Jawad Siam a year to implement the order, with the deadline ending after three months, and imposed an additional fine of 20,000 shekels.
Commenting on the series of prosecutions he faces, Jawad Siam, director of the Wadi Hilweh Information Center, said: "Successive prosecutions, fines, and demolition orders are being imposed on me personally. These are not legal measures, but rather a systematic policy and political persecution aimed at restricting my community and national activities and restricting the work of the Wadi Hilweh Information Center, which monitors violations in Jerusalem and exposes Judaization policies there."
“Over the past few months, demolitions have escalated in Jerusalem, targeting places of worship, homes, buildings, commercial, livestock, and agricultural facilities,” Siam said. “We also witness daily repeated raids on towns and neighborhoods in the city, along with the distribution of demolition notices, warnings, and summonses to follow up with the municipality. This creates a state of constant anxiety and fear among Jerusalemites, as families live under the threat of losing their homes or their livelihood at any moment under the pretext of “lack of a permit,” while imposing impossible conditions for obtaining a building or renovation permit in the city.”
