News from Silwan, a legal gain against settlers, and an upcoming tour

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December 11, 2024

Dear friends,

Two days ago, Salem and Amal Gheith, together with their son Ashraf and his family, were evicted from their home in Batan Al-Hawa (https://x.com/IrAmimAlerts/status/1866469750601072742) . In nearby Al-Bustan, Rami Shafa, his brothers, and their mother await the demolition of their homes (https://www.instagram.com/reel/DDSLOsNRbN4/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==) and have already, in expectation, emptied them of their belongings.

In Silwan, numerous families face one or another form of displacement: In Al-Bustan, 16 buildings have been demolished since the beginning of the year, including a community center and 13 homes—eventually, all the community could be destroyed. In Batan Al-Hawa, three households of the Shehadeh family were evicted last August, several other families have received eviction rulings over the past year, and 80+ families are under the same threat. Rather than being ‘administrative’ matters, both demolitions and evictions are used to drive displacement of Palestinians in East Jerusalem (see ‘the bureaucracy of dispossession’ below for more resources).

“Even when there are much bigger crimes taking place all around, the crime of evicting the families of Batan al-Hawa is unforgivable.”

– Nir Hasson, Haaretz journalist on X (https://x.com/IrAmimAlerts/status/1866472046701453463)

In the face of this, we have organized solidarity visits to the neighborhood, coordinated actions with local activists, and have continued our advocacy efforts, including through legal means which have proved successful (see ‘small victories’ below).

If you are in Jerusalem or nearby and want to join solidarity efforts, please be in contact with us. And, if you want your family or friends to learn more about reality in East Jerusalem, get together a group and contact us (mailto:studytours@ir-amim.org.il?subject=&body=) about organizing a tour or a home visit. And make sure to join us in our upcoming holiday tour around the Old City (see below).

We sincerely thank you for your continued support and for a shared effort to build a reality of justice in this land.

In solidarity,

Ir Amim team
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** The bureaucracy of dispossession
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Israeli authorities often frame these actions as mere technical or bureaucratic matters: demolitions are presented as the ‘enforcement of building regulation’ while evictions are presented as ‘real-estate disputes’. But, in reality, both of these measures are used to facilitate the displacement of Palestinian residents of the city while lending the actions an air of ‘legality’. Part of our educational work is getting this knowledge out, as in the explainers below, which you can share with those around you.
https://www.instagram.com/p/C9uQf2kIO4G/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
https://www.instagram.com/p/C_-3yvbtXBd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Support our work (https://secure.nif.org/onlineactions/EaYvd9fiWUa6Vp9n3eAIDg2)

** Small victories
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Despite these challenging circumstances, sustained opposition can make a difference. Recently, legal action by neighborhood residents and Ir Amim successfully led to the freezing of government funding for a settler-run Jewish heritage center in Batan Al-Hawa.

The proposed center would be run by Ateret Cohanim (the settler organization behind evictions in the neighborhood), and established in a building from which they evicted five households of the Abu Nab family in 2015.

Like other projects in Silwan—such as the settler-operated City of David archaeological site, and the municipality’s plan to build a biblical-themed park in Al-Bustan—this initiative seeks to exploit Jewish history and heritage to assert Israeli control over the area, alter the character of the neighborhood, and increase Jewish presence. Therefore, the freezing of funds to this project is a significant achievement in stopping these advancements.

Your continued support is critical to this work. With your help, we can keep advocating to halt destructive measures and safeguard the right of Palestinian residents to their homes in Jerusalem.
Support our work (https://secure.nif.org/onlineactions/EaYvd9fiWUa6Vp9n3eAIDg2)

** Upcoming tours
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Hebrew-speakers: Join us on a holiday geopolitical tour of Jerusalem’s Old City on Thursday, 26th December at 4.30pm.

In this tour, we will learn about the connection between tourism and politics in the Old City, and we’ll meet with members of the Armenian Christian community, who, this year, have defended their property against efforts to take it over.

Click here (https://drove.com/.2MXz) to sign up.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/17/revealed-israel-has-sped-up-settlement-building-in-east-jerusalem-since-gaza-war-began?CMP=twt_b-gdnnews

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