An Investigation Into the Transformation of Jerusalem After 1967

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Briefing Paper

October 2011

By Dr. Daud Abdullah



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Contents

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1 Construction Policy 1

2 Home Demolitions 3

3 Greater Jerusalem’ and the Apartheid Wall 4

4 Religious Changes 5

5 Ethnic Cleansing 9

6 Conclusion 10

© Middle East Monitor 2011

Title: An investigation into the transformation of Jerusalem after 1967

Published by Middle East Monitor

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Israel‟s occupation of Jerusalem has for allintents and purposes strangled its Arabpopulation. The restrictive policies enforcedin; construct ion, planning, landappropriation, investment in infrastructure

and services are all geared to force the flightof Palestinians and realize the Judaisation of the city. Consequently, every aspect of Palestinian life has been blighted by neglect,discrimination and deprivation.

With the construction of the Apartheid Wall, and its isolation of Jerusalem from the West Bank, the local economy has virtually collapsed. Encouraged by the silence of its

Arab neighbours and complicity of itsEuropean backers, Israel has in recent yearsintensified its efforts to divest Jerusalem of its Islamic character. It has pursued adeliberate, well organized and systematiccampaign to change the religious anddemographic character of the city.

On another level, the occupation seeks toestablish a city that would rival Al Quds.Since the occupation began the Israelisseized almost one-third of the area of theOld City, which was owned by thePalestinian Arab population. Today, 180,000 Jewish settlers reside in east Jerusalem. By the end of 2009, the Arab population isestimated at 270,000.1

The suspension of negotiations on the status

of the occupied city has given theoccupation more time to expand itssettlement and impose more realities on the

ground. Although the future of Jerusalem would be one of the most important issuesto be discussed in any final statusnegotiations, the Israeli authorities havebeen pressing ahead with measures to

completely change the identity of the city before the negotiations begin. The city hasenormous religious, political and nationalsymbolic meaning for Muslims, Arabs andthe Israelis.

Israel‟s unilateral annexation of east Jerusalem contravenes international law andis not recognized by the internationalcommunity. Hence successive UN Security

Council and General Assembly resolutionshave affirmed that all legislative andadministrative measures taken by Israel toalter the character and status of Jerusalem,are null and void and must be rescinded. Inspite of Israel‟s claims, East Jerusalem is stillregarded as part of the occupied Palestinianterritory.

Throughout history, Jerusalem has alwaysbeen the cultural, administrative andcommercial centre of the West Bank.Palestinians regard it as their capital city. InMay 1948 the Zionist completed theoccupation of the western part of the city,expelling 60,000 of its residents from thearea around Maman Allah, Al Biqa‟a alFawqa, Al Biqa‟a al Tata, Al Qatmun, Al Taibiya, Al Misrara and Lifta village upon

An investigation into the transformationof Jerusalem after 1967

Dr. Daud Abdullah



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which the Knesset was built. At the time,the Palestinians owned 88.7% of the westernpart of the city. Soon after the 1967 War,Israel started to redraw the city‟s boundariesto complete its annexation and prevent itsfuture repartition. On 10 June 1967, it

carried out the first act by demolishing theentire Maghareba [North African] Quarter. The reason for this, they claimed, was tofacilitate a plaza that extended from the Jewish Quarter and the Western [Wailing] Wall. During this early period, theGovernment of Israel unilaterally increasedthe size of the previous Jordanianmunicipality by roughly ten times andannexed 70 km2 of the occupied area to

Israel, including east Jerusalem, as well as 64km2 of the West Bank territory; all these were subsequently added to the Municipality of Jerusalem2 and thereafter became subjectto „Israeli law‟, jurisdiction andadministration. 35% of east Jerusalem‟s 70.5km2 of land has been expropriated forIsraeli settlements. B‟Tselem, the Israelihuman rights organization, asserts that most

of this expropriated land was privately-owned Arab property.3

The immediate period after the war saw thegrowth of the Jewish Quarter fourfoldthrough the seizure of 29 dunums of land inthe vicinity and confiscation of 700 homes.4 Under the cover of the 1953 Land Acquisition Law, the Israeli authoritiesseized 35% of the area of east Jerusalem to

build settlements – in public interest.5 Fifteen settlements were built on this landcontaining some 47,000 housing units. ThisLand Acquisition Law was the mostimportant piece of legislation used to seizepeoples land. On 27th June 1967 the Israelioccupation announced its intent to unify both parts of the city under itsadministration.6

From the early days of the occupation Israelbegun to seize the homes of Palestinians in

the city. They took the homes of thosePalestinians who had fled during the war,under the guise of a law to administerrefugee property and other similar legislation which allowed them to seize property. They also passed specific laws to seize the

property of those who remained in the city.Under the 1950 Absentee Law the Israelisseized large tracts of land and used itintensively to judaise the city; this wasparticularly the case with the property that was seized in the Old City. One of the mostsinister of these is the Green Land Law which is used by the occupation authoritiesto appropriate private property for publicinterests. Similarly, the tax laws and nature

reserve laws have all been used to seizeprivate land.

Under the Absentee Property Law No. 58 of 1967 after they conducted a census of the Arab residents of the city and demandedthat within three months they should obtainIsraeli identity documents. Those Jerusalemites who were not present were

declared absent and their property and wealth were subsequently seized.7 Anabsentee under Israeli law is a person wholeft the West Bank region before 7th June1967 or on that day, or after. Accordingly,all their property was transferred to theCustodian of Absentee Property who hasthe power to dispense with it by selling orlease. Through this means, Israel managedto take control of large parts of Jerusalem.

Although they declared 52% of the Old City as green reserves upon which noconstruction should take place, these areasactually became a strategic area forsettlement construction. This occurred in Jebal Abu Ghuneim, which was renamedHar Homa.8 One natural consequence of thesettlement expansion programme is that it

significantly reduced the land and resourcesavailable for Palestinian construction anddevelopment. Since 1967,



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international law.

Over the years the Israeli occupation hascarried out a number of polices to changethe demographic character of Jerusalem,contrary to international law. Foremost

among these has been the withdrawal of identity papers of a large number of Jerusalemites under various pretexts anddisplacing a larger number outside the city by way of the Apartheid Wall, which hasappropriated large areas of private land forsettlement expansion.

Theoretically, Palestinians from theexpanded municipal boundary were allowed

to reside in Jerusalem. However, becauseeast Jerusalem Palestinians were defined aspermanent residents of Israel, rather thancitizens, their residency status was alwayssubject to a number of administrativeregulations, foremost of which was theacquisition of ID cards. An estimated 14,000East Jerusalem Palestinians have had theirresidency revoked since 1967; more than

4,500 of these were revoked in 2008.16

Inthe absence of the mandatory ID, many Palestinians were forced to leave the city. About 17,000 Jerusalemites left and travelledabroad since 1967. Another 12,000 have leftto other parts of Palestine. In either case, theIsraeli authorities have revoked the Jerusalem ID cards of Palestinian Jerusalemites who have had extended staysoutside of the city or the remainder of the

occupied territories. It is estimated that50,000 to 60,000 ID cards have been withdrawn since the start of the occupation.

Soon after the occupation begun Israelmoved to abolish the Arab administration inthe city. They dissolved the Arab municipalcouncil, created their own municipal council

and ordered the Arab workers to register with them in order to secure their jobs.

Since 1967, twelve Jewish „neighbourhoods‟ were established in the areas incorporatedinto what is called Greater Jerusalem. Article

49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention clearly states that the construction of settlements within the extended municipal boundary constitutes a clear breach of internationallaw which forbids the occupying power to“transfer parts of its own civilian populationinto the territory it occupies.” The outercircle of settlements known as the „second wall‟ has extended the city‟s metropolitanboundaries, which is now demarcated by the

Apartheid Wall.

The construction of this wall has effectively redrawn the geographical boundaries of thecity and reinforced the separation of east Jerusalem from the rest of the West Bank.„Greater Jerusalem‟ has thus been extendedto the outskirts of Ramallah in the north,Bethlehem in the south, and Jericho in the

east. This has not only cut-off thePalestinians in the West Bank from theircultural heartland, but it has also separatedthe northern part of the West Bank from thesouth.17 One of the most devastating economic consequences of the Apartheid Wall is that it has separated several ruralcommunities from their agricultural land inthe Jerusalem hinterland. This has led to amarked decline in production and fall in

living standards.

Apart from isolating Jerusalem from the West Bank, the expansion of the municipalboundaries of the city was also intended toincorporate a number of Jewish settlementsinto the city. Several roads were constructedto link between the settlements and the city. Today, all of east Jerusalem and the

neighbouring villages have been cordonedby two belts of settlements one within theborders of the Old City and the other




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outside.

As part of its strategy to isolate east Jerusalem from the West Bank, the Israelioccupation also took a number of deliberatemeasures to prevent Palestinians from

visiting the city, except through itspermission. They established check points tosee who was coming. After 2002 they beganthe construction of the Apartheid Wallaround the city, which they called the „thedefence line on Jerusalem‟. This wall whichis 54 kilometers long forces the residents toenter through the main corridors. They alsobuilt trenches on all the openings leading tothe city, in the area of Ayzariyah and Al Tur.

Other trenches were dug to isolate the villages in the north-western part of the city.

Today, the wall has placed severalPalestinian communities in east Jerusalemon its „West Bank‟ side; thus making itnecessary for them to negotiate Israeli check points into order to access the health,education and other social services to which

they are entitled as residents of Jerusalem. In July 2004, the International Court of Justice(ICJ) called on Israel to cease constructionof the Barrier „including in and around East Jerusalem‟; dismantle the sections already completed; and „repeal or render ineffectiveforthwith all legislative and regulatory actsrelating thereto.‟18

Significantly, these restrictions were even

extended to the Palestinian Authority afterthe signing of the Oslo accords. In 1994Israel passed a law to implement the Gaza – Jericho Agreement, which prevented the PAfrom conducting any activities in Jerusalem,no meetings or representation on the pretextthat it was part of Israel. They were only allowed if they obtained written permissionfrom the government of Israel.

Throughout the long decades of occupationIsrael‟s policy in Jerusalem has been basically two-fold. The first is to change the characterof the city in every respect – to reflect

Jewish thought, architecture, culture andhistory. Hence they seek in this regard toestablish the „Third Temple‟ in the sanctuary of the haram and surround the city withsettlements.

In this context, it is noteworthy that seniorarchaeologists at Tel Aviv University havecast doubt on the alleged Jewish heritage of Jerusalem. Professor Finkelstein and RafiGreenberg of Tel Aviv University recently told the Jerusalem Post that Jewisharchaeologists have found no historical orarchaeological evidence to back the alleged Temple of Solomon. Finkelstein said thatthere is no archaeological evidence to proveit really existed. Professor Yoni Mizrahi, anindependent archaeologist who has worked with the International Atomic Energy

Agency, agreed with Finkelstein.

On another level, they seek to erase the Arab character of the city. This, in short,reflects the nature of the conflict there. After years of excavation that haveundermined the Aqsa Mosque and theDome of the Rock. The reality of the dangerposed to these mosques has become evermore apparent. Meanwhile, the excavationshave multiplied to the point of making itextremely difficult to keep track of them.

Prior to 1967, many Jewish rabbismaintained that it was forbidden for Jews toenter Al Aqsa Mosque [Temple Mount, asthey call it]. The old Jewish communities in Jerusalem were from the beginning very sceptical about the Zionists whom they

viewed as unholy secularists. Indeed, theissue of Jerusalem never featured in thediscussions or decisions of the founders of



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the Zionist movement, despite the fact thatthe very name of their movement wasderived from one of the names of Jerusalem.19

Shortly after his only visit to the city in 1898,

Theodor Herzl wrote, „When I rememberthee in days to come, O Jerusalem, it willnot be with pleasure.” Up until the First World War the Zionist movement avoidedmaking Jerusalem the centre of their interestin Palestine because of its importance toMuslims and Christians. Hence the firstoffice of the movement was established notin Jerusalem but in Jaffa in 1908.20 Being apparently aware that the Vatican would

oppose any political entity in Jerusalem,Herzl was thus prepared to sacrifice the city in return for broader political and territorialgains in Palestine.

The Zionist restraint toward Jerusalemchanged dramatically after the 1967 War when some rabbis interpreted the victory asan approval from God to build the Third

Temple. Subsequently, in 1980, Israelannounced that Jerusalem was its eternaland undivided capital. By the beginning of the 1990s, calls to build the Third Templehad gathered momentum.21 Meanwhile,Palestinians in Jerusalem, the West Bank,and Israel, became increasingly restrictedfrom praying in Masjid Al Aqsa. Thisparticular policy has far reaching consequences that extend well beyond

Palestine because it transgresses not only thefaith of every Muslim in the world, but alsotheir heritage, culture and civilization. Thefact that it was the first Muslim qibla – direction of prayer - and point of ascent of the Prophet Muhammad is enough toconfirm its centrality in the Muslim faith.

For this reason Muslims and Arabs reject

any notion of concession in this city to theZionists. They would not even accept a Jewish Palestinian joint sovereignty over the

city. Thus they regard the current efforts by the US and Israel to impose this view on thePalestinians as an affront, not least becauseit seeks to dissolve the Palestinian cause inorder to advance Israel‟s interests. Indeed,Muslims and Arabs believe the Palestinians

have no right to surrender any part of Jerusalem to Israel; instead their primary duty is to liberate the city from occupation.

One of the greatest challenges to the notionof the Jewishness of Jerusalem is theabsence of any distinctive Jewish sanctuary or historical site in the city. This has,naturally, created a sense of desperation.Hence, the settlers have built a number of

synagogues including; the „Tent of Issac‟,opposite the Bab Al Silsilah, and the KharabSynagogue in the Jewish Quarter; as well as anumber of excavations to attract people.Significantly, the Ministry of Tourism stilluses Masjid Al Aqsa, the Dome of the Rock and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre tomarket the city as a tourist destination.22 The purpose of these excavations and

tunnels beneath Al Aqsa is to unearthremnants of the „Temple‟. Yet, they can only be explained in a holistic manner;recognizing them as part of a broadercampaign to seize control not only of the Western Wall but the entire Old City andHaram al Sheriff especially. During theperiod from 21 August 2009 to 21 August2010 the number of excavations beneathand around Masjid al Aqsa increased from

25 to 34.23 They have led to a number of cracks and fissures in the mosque and itssurroundings. A section of Wadi HalwaStreet, south of the mosque, collapsed in January 2010. Likewise, fissures and erosions were discovered in the walls of the Marwaniprayer area.24

Several resolutions have been passed by the

Security Council and UNESCO calling onIsrael to end these excavations but it has



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refused to comply. Under international law,excavations by the occupier in occupied landare strictly forbidden. These excavationshave reached dangerously close to Bir al Waraqa and Bir al Ka‟as beneath the Masjidal Haram al Sheriff, ultimately to destabiliseits foundation. These excavations cover anarea of almost 10 dunums. They have notstopped since the occupation began; on thecontrary they have intensified.

One other aim is to establish a Jewish touristcity beneath the ground. All of these actionsamount to theft of historical artefacts.

Behind the veneer of „scientific‟ researchthese excavations have concealed the realideological motivations. In the early stagesof occupation the excavations were carriedout by religious organizations and notspecialist archaeological institutions. During the 1990s the occupation municipalauthorities in Jerusalem proposed a projectto judaise the area it calls the „the Holy Basin‟. This entailed the creation of an„inner‟ layer of settlements within Palestinianresidential areas, in the so-called „Holy Basin‟. This area includes all of the Old City and large sections of its environs such asShaykh Jaraah and Wadi Juz in the north, Al Tur in the east and Silwan in the south.

This project seeks to establish a city according to Torah specifications beneath

Masjid Al Aqsa and in the area of Silwan andparts of the Old City. The proposed city would be connected by a series of recreational parks and museums andarchaeological sites above the groundsurrounding the Old City, especially in thesouth where Silwan is located and east where there is the Olive Mount and At Turneighbourhood. In the process of doing thisthey aim to complete the replacement of the

residents of these areas with Jewish settlers.Ultimately, the occupation seeks to create a

semblance of continuity between the Jewishsettlements in Jerusalem [the Old City] andthose which are at its fringes such as Tel alFranciyeh in the north.

This project has a number of aims; cultural,political, demographic and religious. Among the most important objectives is to removethe Arab population as far away as possiblefrom Al Aqsa Mosque and the Old city.Ideally, it would be even better to expeditetheir expulsion from the city and isolate themosque from Jerusalem‟s Arab population -the people best placed to defend it. Such ascenario would allow the Zionists to do

whatever they want to do to the mosque whenever they choose. Israeli media sourcesregularly report efforts by extremist settlersgroups to secure government permission tobuild the „Temple‟ in the mosque.

The occupation has made significantprogress in its plans. By August 2009 there were 25 disclosed excavation sites beneaththe Aqsa Mosque and its surroundings. These include residential, commercial andreligious buildings. These constructions areseen as a prelude to the destruction of themosque and evacuation of the Palestinianinhabitants. It is presumed that there areother sites which are undisclosed. All these violations of UN resolutions are done in thename of scientific exploration.

During 2009 the Israeli authoritiesundertook a number of steps to reinforcetheir control of Jerusalem and the Old City in particular and the „Holy Basin‟. They announced plans to tighten their grip on east Jerusalem, Al Aqsa Mosque and the Islamicand Christian sites by delegating theircontrol over them to the Israeliadministration of the „Holy Basin‟ authority. The plan which includes new settlement

projects aims to seize control of land andIslamic and Christian endowments and



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transfer their administration to themunicipality and government authorities.25 They built a number of synagogues aboveground such as the Tent of Issac (Ohel Yitzhak) facing Al Silsilah Gate and theHuva synagogue in Al Sharaf

neighbourhood.

The Islamic endowments and religious sites were not the only targets of the occupation.In recent years, there has been an upsurge inattacks on Christian holy sites in Jerusalem. The Ma‟amadaniya church in west Jerusalem was set ablaze after an arson attack by Jewish settlers in October 2010. Otherchurches were similarly attacked in what

appears to be an attempt to eliminate any Christian presence in the west of the city. The percentage of Christians in Jerusalemhas dropped from 20% in 1948 to 2.9% in1988 to 1.9% in 2009.26 Should currenttrends continue, it is very likely that theChristian presence in Jerusalem would sooncome to an end.

The Israeli aggression in Jerusalem has beeneven extended to the cemeteries. The city‟smunicipality has approved the constructionof a „Museum of Tolerance‟ in Maman AllahCemetery, which is located about twokilometres west of Al Khalil Gate. This is anIslamic endowment which bears the remainsof several companions of the ProphetMuhammad, the generation of hissuccessors and thousands of Islamic

scholars. Maman Allah is the largest Islamiccemetery in Jerusalem and covers an area of 200 dunums. The project which is financedby the Simon Wisenthal center is estimatedto cost some $200 million. The process of transformation of the cemetery has beengradual. In 1985 the ministry of transportation built a car park on a sectionof it. Between 1985-87, a number of

excavations and a network of drains wereconstructed to expand the car park. Work on the „Museum of Tolerance‟ began in

January 2005. 95% of the graves have beenexhumed to build the car park and a publicpark.27

Christian sites are similarly endangered. InMarch 2005 a scandal broke out when it was

revealed that property belonging to theOrthodox Church was sold as part of asecret deal between two settler groups andthe Greek Orthodox Patriarch. According tothe deal, the settlers purchased the land on which the imperial hotel is located and 27commercial properties owned by thePatriarchate in the Omar ibn al KhattabSquare, near Al Khalil in the Old City. Thescandal led to the removal of the Patriarch

Irineos I in May 2005 after it was confirmedthat he was involved.

Apart from these, the Israeli authorities havestepped up their campaign to change thehistorical and religious character of Jerusalem through what it calls the councilfor names. It has begun to change the namesof places and streets according to Jewish

expressions or their understanding of the Torah. In the Old City, Al Asbat Gate whichis located in the middle of the eastern wallof the city has been changed to Ha‟ariyut(black) Street, Ar Rahma Gate which is alsoin the middle of the eastern wall has beenchanged to Hazhaaf [Golden] Street, AlKhalil Gate in the middle of the Western Wall is renamed Yafu Street, Nabi DaudGate located in the south-west of the wall is

renamed Tzion Street, the Buraq Wall in thesouthern part of the Western Wall isrenamed Hakutal Hamarafi.28

Since 2007 the Israeli archaeologicalauthorities, with the support of the politicalestablishment, have conducted a programmecalled the Old City Walls ConservationProject. These walls were built by the order

of the Ottoman Sultan Sulaiman al Qanuniin the mid-16th century, after the old walls were destroyed during the Crusades. The



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projects.30 Although the Arabs pay 25% of the municipal budget they only receive 5%of its services provided by the authority. They ordered the closure of Arab banks andreplaced them with branches of Israelibanks. And while they prevented goods

from being imported from the West Bank they flooded the city with Israeli goods.31

In 1973 they closed the bureau of socialaffairs and forced 30 charities including allthe medical, educational and charitableinstitutes to function under Israeli law andsupervision. This was the case with AlMaqasid Islamic Charitable Hospital, theOrthodox Alms House and its allied

hospital, the Red Crescent hospital and theCollege of Science and Technology.

Today, Jerusalemites are required to havelicences as tour-guides, which are usually denied. In the circumstances, they face achoice of either staying in a prohibitively expensive Jerusalem or moving to the otherside of the Apartheid Wall, in the West

Bank.

The worst affected are the elders, childrenand low income earners. Sixty-five per centof Jerusalemites live below the poverty linecompared to 31% among Jews.32 Many children are forced to leave school early toenter the labour force. Other socialproblems include domestic violence, under-achievement in school, drug addiction, and

crime; all are on the rise.

In theory, Jerusalemites are allowed to work in Israel without work permits and obtainsocial welfare; but this has nevermaterialised. While they could vote inmunicipal elections, they are not allowed to vote in parliamentary elections. They are,instead, treated as strangers, always being

called upon to prove their residency rights.

The Israeli occupation has been responsible

for the destruction of 40% of theagricultural sector in Jerusalem through itscontrol of wells and denial of water. Thirty-five per cent of livestock have beendecimated. As for the local merchants, many were forced to close their shops because of

the lack of business and attendant hightaxes. There are 14 different categories of taxes.33 A further 125,000 Jerusalemites now face the loss of their identity documents andresidency rights because of the Wall, whichhas isolated them. Even in marriage, theoccupation forbids marriage betweenresidents of Jerusalem and residents of the West Bank or Israel. If they do get married,their children are not recognized and are

refused birth certificates.

This investigation has corroborated indelibleevidence of a grave danger facing Jerusalemand its indigenous inhabitants. For fourdecades a deliberate paper of policy wasenforced to readjust the demographic

balance in the city in favour of the Jewishsettlers. The struggle for Jerusalem willdominate for years to come as Israel seeks tochange its status and character and thePalestinians exercise their right to live freely in the city.

Jerusalem is unique because it does notcontain the personal property of any Palestinian but the heritage of the entireMuslim nation. If Palestine is regarded asthe heart of Bilad al Sham, Bayt al Maqdis(Jerusalem) is its heart. It is one of the mostsacred of Islamic lands, and occupies thehighest station. There are numerousprophetic traditions which affirm the virtuesof Bayt al Maqdis and its noble Masjid al Aqsa. For Muslims, it was their first Qibla ordirection to which they turned in prayer.

Similarly, it is the third most holy mosque inIslam after the Holy Mosque in Makkah andthe Prophet‟s Mosque in Madina.




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Israel‟s actions in occupied Jerusalem arenot just an assault on Muslim rights butequally an affront to the world community.In March 2011 the UN Special Rapporteurfor Humanitarian Conditions in theoccupied territories, Richard Falk told the

UN Human Rights Council that “Thecontinued pattern of settlement expansionin East Jerusalem combined with forcibleeviction of long residing Palestinians arecreating an intolerable situation that canonly be described, in its cumulative impact,as a form of ethnic cleansing.”

Israel has been able to pursue theseoppressive policies because there has been

no deterrent political action from thePalestinian Authority, since 1994, or theinternational mediators, notably the UnitedStates. It has imposed upon the mediatorsthe view that Jerusalem is outside theframework of negotiations, such that it isfree to do whatever it wishes in Jerusalemand Masjid Al Aqsa. The persistentincursions, clashes and tensions surrounding

the Masjid are contrived so that Israel wouldeventually assume its control. What isrequired is not just an internationalintervention to save Al Aqsa, but also the Jerusalemite population. Ultimately, thesolution is not to end the settlements orexcavations; it is to end the occupation.

Israel‟s prolonged occupation of Jerusalemhas engendered a system characterised by

“colonialism,” “apartheid” and “ethniccleansing”. A report written by UN SpecialRapporteur Richard Falk, in march 2011recommend the International Court of Justice (ICJ) assess these allegations, the ideais to ensure legal consequences to the failureby Israel to end its occupation. All theunilateral legislative steps taken by Israel in Jerusalem aimed at changing its religious and

demographic character are not recognizedby the international community (see interalia, UN Security Council Resolutions 252,

267, 471, 476 and 478); they remain null and void.

Undoubtedly, one of the most disturbing aspects of the occupation is its consolidationof a system of apartheid rule. Though often

associated with the racist policies that wereimplemented in South Africa, apartheidmust not be limited to any geographiclocation or historical period. According tothe International Convention on theSuppression and Punishment of the Crimeof Apartheid GA Resolution 3068 (1973), Apartheid refers to policies and practicesenacted in order to establish and maintaindomination by one racial group of persons

over any other racial group of persons andsystematically oppressing them. The 1998Rome Statue which established theInternational Criminal Court cites the crimeof apartheid as one of the crimes againsthumanity.

Since 1967 Israel has transformed the livesof the inhabitants of Jerusalem with a

system of punitive house demolitions,expulsions and restrictions; it fosteredpreferential citizenship and residence laws which favored Jews over Palestinians;allowed dual and discriminatory arrangements for movement within Jerusalem; discriminatory policies on landownership, tenure and use; extensiveburdening of Palestinians with taxes, and with burdensome permit and identification

requirements imposed only on Palestinians.

Meaningful support for the Palestinianpeople would require more than thecustomary adoption of UN resolutions. They would require practical help to remainin their city. Palestinian civil society andinstitutions must be supported. A decisiveend to the culture of political apathy is

needed to end the violation of law in Jerusalem. No other country would beallowed to challenge the international will



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with such impunity.

Any continued failure to act would only undermine respect for international law,erode trust in the international community and its institutions and undermine all efforts

to bring about a peaceful resolution of theconflict in Palestine.

END NOTES

1 . Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs- occupied Palestine territories (OCHA), “East Jerusalem: Key Humanitarian Concerns”, (OCHA, Jerusalem: March 2011), p.1192 . Ibid., p.23 . B‟Tselem (The Israeli Center for Human Rights inthe Occupied Territories), Discrimination in Planning,Building, and Land Expropriation, 6 May 2010, http:// www.btselem.org/jerusalem/discriminating_policy 4 . A. Abu Aamer, Al Siyasah As Suhyuniyeh TujahMadinat Al Quds (Al Bayan, Riyadh: 2009), p.485 . Ibid.6 . E. Weizman, Hollow Land – Israel‟s Architecture of Occupation, (Verso, London:2007), p.25

7 . Abu Aamer, op.cit., p.618 . Ibid., p.509 . ibid.10 . OCHA, op.cit.,p.211 . B‟Tselem, Revocation of Residency in east Jerusalem, http://www.btselem.org, 6th May 201012 . Abu Aamer, op.cit., p.4913 . Human Rights Watch, (HRW), “Separate andUnequal: Israel‟s Discriminatory Treatment of Palestinians in the occupied Palestinian territories”,December 2010, p.4714 . Abu Aamer, op.cit., p.51

15 . Ibid. p.5216 . OCHA, op.cit., p.217 . Weizman, op.cit., p.2618 . International Court of Justice (ICJ), LegalConsequences of the Construction of a Wall in theOccupied Palestinian Territory, Advisory Opinion of 9 July 2004,http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/index.php?p1=3&p2=4&k=5a &case=131&code=mwp&p3=419 . S. Abu Zaida, “The Zionist Approach to Jerusalem1897-1937” in Jerusalem Quarterly, No.32, Autumn2007, p.70

20 . Ibid., p.7221 . Al Quds International Institution, “Ayn Ala Ala AlQuds”, Annual Report, 2010, p.4

22 . M. Saleh (ed), The Palestinian Strategic Report2009, (Al Zaytouna Centre, Beirut:2010), p.27223 . M. Saleh (ed), The Palestinian Strategic Report2010, (Al Zaytouna Centre, Beirut:2011), p.25224 . Ibid., p.25425 . M. Saleh, Mu‟aanaat Al Quds Wa Al Muqadasaat Tahta Al Ihtilal Al Israeli, (Al Zaytouna Centre,Beirut:2011), p.51

26 . Saleh, Strategic Report 2010, p.25927 . Saleh, Mu‟aanaat Al Quds, op.cit., p.54 28 . Ibid., p.5929 . A. Matani, “Aswaar Al Quds Wa Rumuz Al Tahweed”, Centre for Contemporary Studies, 9thFebruary 2011, p.230 . Abu Aamer, op.cit, p.5331 . Ibid.32 . M. Amin, “43 Aam Bayna Al Ihtilal Wa Al Hisaar”, Al Quds, No.139, July 2010, p.8733 . Ibid.

An Investigation Into the Transformation of Jerusalem After 1967

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Transcript of An Investigation Into the Transformation of Jerusalem After 1967