Al-Bustan neighborhood - from demolition to confiscation... Land clearing begins in preparation for settlement projects
Israeli occupation authorities have started executing their plans in the Al-Bustan neighborhood of Silwan. They have shifted from issuing threats and carrying out demolitions to confiscating land and fundamentally changing the neighborhood's character. This step is regarded as the most serious in years.
Municipality bulldozers, accompanied by police, stormed the Al-Bustan neighborhood, where they started clearing land, removing debris from a demolished house and parts of the walls. This is part of preparations to turn the area into settlement projects, such as parking lots and gardens for settlers.
Fakhri Abu Diab, spokesperson for the Silwan Land and Property Committee, stated that bulldozers have started clearing the rubble and leveling the land in the neighborhood. He described this as the actual enforcement of longstanding plans aimed at transforming the neighborhood into gardens and facilities for settlers.
Abu Diab clarified that the area bulldozed today is officially designated as a parking lot for settlers' vehicles, according to plans and maps.
Abu Diab said, "The occupation municipality is using all its resources to change the current situation in Al-Bustan neighborhood, following plans to reshape the area based on a settlement vision."
The Al-Bustan neighborhood plan originates from 2004, when the occupation municipality decided to demolish the entire neighborhood to make way for the "King's Garden" project on its site. In 2005, demolition notices started being issued, but the plan was later halted due to international pressure, along with human rights and diplomatic efforts.
For more than twenty years, neighborhood residents fought through legal actions and grassroots efforts to oppose the plan. They worked with engineers and lawyers to submit alternative zoning proposals, which included opening streets and designating land for public facilities like schools and playgrounds. Despite this, in March 2021, the occupation municipality rejected these proposals and refused to extend the freeze on demolition orders, which residents viewed as a breach of earlier agreements.
The Wadi Hilweh Information Center reports that the Al-Bustan neighborhood has around 100 homes, with over half destroyed due to municipal actions or residents being compelled to demolish their own homes under pressure. Since late 2023, 47 homes have been demolished.
All the homes that were demolished or face demolition are inhabited, with some dating back to the 1970s and 80s.
Today's developments in the Al-Bustan neighborhood signify a crucial shift from legal warnings to actual on-site action. This intensifies residents' concerns and prompts new questions about their future and land preservation. The problem now extends beyond demolition and displacement; land confiscation and landscape changes have become an evident reality.
