The District Court issues a new decision to evict three buildings belonging to the Al-Rajabi family in Batn al-Hawa – Silwan
From the narrow alleys of Silwan, which forms the southern protectorate of Al-Aqsa Mosque, a succession of Israeli court decisions targeting the Palestinian presence there continues. This is no longer a legal dispute, as the occupation authorities attempt to portray it, but rather a battle for existence, waged in courtrooms under a legal cover. The core of the decision is the forced displacement and emptying of the neighborhood of its residents for the benefit of a settlement project that is expanding day by day.
On Sunday, the Israeli District Court issued a decision to evict three residential buildings belonging to the Al-Rajabi family in the Batn al-Hawa neighborhood of Silwan, south of Al-Aqsa Mosque. This decision comes within the framework of a systematic settlement plan led by the Ateret Cohanim association to control large areas of the neighborhood, claiming historical ownership dating back to before 1881.
This decision is not isolated; it joins a series of similar decisions issued in just one week, threatening the eviction of 37 apartments housing more than 300 people, placing the neighborhood at the most dangerous stage of forced displacement.
Details of the court's decisions
Last week, the District Court held a hearing to consider the appeal of the Al-Rajabi families (Yaqoub, Nidal, and Fathi) against previous eviction orders. However, today it issued its ruling rejecting the appeal and ordering the eviction.
Zuhair Al-Rajabi, head of the Batn al-Hawa neighborhood committee, explained that Israeli courts are issuing eviction orders in a rapid and successive manner. He noted that some of the orders—such as those for buildings belonging to him and his brothers, as well as the Basbous family building—were issued in absentia, without the presence of the residents, based on previous orders.
Al-Rajabi added that the families were also forced to pay fines of NIS 20,000 in attorney fees and were given until mid-November to appeal to the Supreme Court. If the appeal is not filed, the eviction orders will be enforceable by the end of the year.
Forced displacement by Ateret Cohanim
Al-Rajabi emphasized that these decisions represent forced displacement and the deliberate expulsion of Jerusalemites, with the aim of increasing the number of settlers in Jerusalem in general and Silwan in particular. He explained that the plan to Judaize the Batn al-Hawa neighborhood effectively means transforming it into a fully Jewish neighborhood at the expense of the Palestinian residents, who will not even be allowed to erect alternative tents on their lands, claiming that they belong to Jews.
Al-Rajabi added: "Silwan is the southern protectorate of Al-Aqsa Mosque, and controlling it facilitates controlling Al-Aqsa itself. What is happening is a comprehensive attack against the residents through the courts and judges, with direct support from the government and field forces, while the Ateret Cohanim Association is frantically seeking to evict us."
He emphasized that the residents are rejecting all compensation offers and enticements presented to them over the past years and are determined to remain in their homes and land: "We have no alternative to our neighborhood and our homes."
Data and dimensions of the “Settlement Plan”
The Wadi Hilweh Information Center in Jerusalem explained that all the threatened buildings and apartments fall within a settlement plan by the Ateret Cohanim Association to control 5200 square meters of land in the "Al-Hara Al-Wusta" of the Batn al-Hawa neighborhood, claiming ownership by Jews of Yemenite origin since 1881.
The center explained that this area is divided into six plots of land bearing specific numbers, and the association claims that the Israeli Supreme Court has approved the settlers' ownership of these lands. The association delivered its first court notice to the families in 2016, followed by a series of court hearings that culminated in the issuance of the first eviction order by the Magistrates Court in 2020.
The center noted that the targeted land contains between 30 and 35 residential buildings, home to approximately 80 Jerusalemite families, comprising approximately 600 individuals. All of these families have lived in the neighborhood for decades, having purchased the land and properties from their previous owners under official documents dating back to the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s.
The center confirmed that Ateret Cohanim has already succeeded in implementing several eviction orders against Jerusalemite families from the neighborhood over the past few years, including the Shehadeh, Ghaith, and Abu Nab families, as part of the same alleged ownership claims.
Every home threatened with eviction represents a new chapter in a Judaization policy aimed at encircling Al-Aqsa Mosque. Meanwhile, the residents' voice remains unified (despite the fines, pressure, and hasty decisions: staying in their homes means staying in Jerusalem).
