RAMALLAH, A Palestinian expert on Israeli settlements in the occupied territories said today that Israel’s settlement projects in occupied East Jerusalem aim to change the geography and demography of the city.
Suheil Khalilieh, director of the settlement monitoring unit at the Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem (ARIJ), told WAFA that Israel wants to control as much of the East Jerusalem land as possible by taking advantage of the powers granted to the official in charge of the so-called absentee property, a right-wing settler, who has control over a thousand properties in East Jerusalem.
This official has begun to manipulate the classification of properties in East Jerusalem in order to control them through settlement projects, he said.
The ARIJ expert was commenting on a report that appeared today in the Israeli daily, Haaretz, that talked about plans to build several settlements in the occupied part of the holy city that would totally alter its character and identity.
Khalilieh emphasized that the Israeli government had designated many areas in East Jerusalem as green areas and others as public parks in order to later change this classification and establish settlements on these lands.
He pointed out that these areas are mostly in the Old City and around Jerusalem. Their ownership is quickly transferred to the settlement associations without the Palestinian owners of these lands being able to claim them back, explaining that the Israeli government wants to redraw the borders of Jerusalem from the outside and inside as well, especially in the “holy basin”, the area around and near the Old City of Jerusalem, in order to seize it and expel its rightful owners.
Khalilieh said Israel is currently working to evacuate the industrial zone in Wad al-Joz area, which is part of the so-called holy basin, that will lead to the demolition of 200 industrial facilities owned for decades by Palestinians in order to build what it refers to as Silicon Valley, as well as tourist centers in nearby al-Sawwana area after controlling it and displacing its residents.
The Israeli project at Damascus Gate, he added, aims to completely close the area to the Palestinians, and the “holy basin” area will be turned into settlement projects after obliterating its Arab landmarks.
Khalilieh stressed that this issue is totally political and that Israel is racing against time to create a fait accompli in East Jerusalem that would give it a bigger presence in the occupied city.
He pointed out that there are three Jewish moguls who pay exorbitant sums of money to the settlement organizations, particularly those working to change the character of occupied East Jerusalem, in order to seize Palestinian land and real estate: Sheldon Adelson, Irving Moskowitz, and Roman Abramovich.
Khalilieh stressed the importance of strengthening and sustaining the Palestinian presence in Jerusalem.
Source: Palestinian News & Info Agency