Mass displacement in Silwan: 13 apartments evicted, leaving dozens of families homeless
Today, Israeli occupation authorities evicted residents from 13 apartments in the Batn al-Hawa neighborhood of Silwan, south of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, to benefit the settler organization Ateret Cohanim, citing 'Jewish ownership' of the land where the homes are located.
Occupation forces, along with personnel from the "Execution and Enforcement" department, stormed the Batn al-Hawa neighborhood. They spread out across several areas, occupying rooftops and high ground before starting the evictions.
The forces initially raided two apartments belonging to the Basbous family, forcibly removing the residents, just two days after seizing two other apartments of the same family in the same building. After completing these evictions, they targeted buildings owned by the Rajabi family, where they stormed 11 apartments, evicted the residents, and then emptied the apartments, transporting their contents by truck.
The evacuated apartments included:
• Two apartments belonging to the Basbous family
• The building belonging to Nidal al-Rajabi, consisting of six apartments
• The building belonging to Yaqoub al-Rajabi, consisting of four apartments
• An apartment belonging to Fathi al-Rajabi.
The Wadi Hilweh Information Center reported that on the third day of Eid al-Fitr, authorities seized two apartments owned by the Basbous family, specifically those of brothers Raed and Muhammad Basbous. Today, they also seized two more apartments belonging to Raafat and Ibrahim Basbous.
The occupation authorities displaced over 90 individuals during the past days, including the elderly and children, amid ongoing evictions in the neighborhood.
Procedures, courts, and decisions in favor of the settlers
The eviction and widespread takeover follow a lengthy struggle by Jerusalemite families over the past years to preserve their properties, where they have lived for decades.
For ten years, Batn al-Hawa residents engaged in legal battles in Israeli courts, from the Magistrate's Court to the Supreme Court. They faced sudden notices claiming land ownership by Yemeni Jews since 1881. Despite providing official documents confirming their ownership from the 1950s to the 1970s, courts consistently ordered their eviction in favor of settler organizations.
The Ateret Cohanim organization initially served the families with a legal notice in 2016, leading to a series of hearings that resulted in the first eviction order by the Magistrate's Court in 2020.
Continuous Threats and Endless Evictions
The Wadi Hilweh Information Center stated that the land targeted in the Batn al-Hawa neighborhood includes 30 to 35 residential buildings, home to about 80 Jerusalemite families, totaling roughly 600 people, all of whom have lived in the neighborhood for many years.
Within the same context and case, the Ateret Cohanim organization previously took control of buildings and apartments belonging to the Shehada, Abu Nab, Ghaith, Odeh, Shweiki, Rajabi, Sarhan, and Abu Nab families. These families lived in entire apartment buildings, each comprising multiple units, rather than just single apartments.
