14 September 1997

Under heavy police protection late last night, Jewish settlers from the radical settler’s group Atarot Cohanim entered a Palestinian home purportedly bought from Fouad Hadieh in the Arab Jerusalem neighborhood of Ras al Amoud. According to Israeli radio, this act was approved by the Israeli government in a cabinet meeting last Wednesday. This move, planned and approved by the Israeli government while Secretary Albright was still in Israel/Palestine, is another example of Israel’s intention to push its settlement agenda in spite of Palestinian and US opposition. The government’s approval of the settlers’ activity during this tense period in Jerusalem is reminiscent of the opening of the tunnel last September, where a week of violence left hundreds injured and more than 70 Palestinians dead.

This home stands in the same Palestinian neighborhood where a new Jewish settlement, planned by American millionaire Muscovitz, was approved by the Jerusalem municipality yesterday. Both these acts have further escalated tensions in the area.

In 1992, an Israeli independent commission issued their final report, the “Klugman Report”, which investigated the practices of settler groups like Atarot Cohanim. Their findings showed widespread corruption and fraud on the part of the West Jerusalem municipality, the Custodian of Absentee Property who all took an active role in illegal takeovers of Arab homes and the establishment of illegal Jewish settlements in occupied Jerusalem. The illegal settlers in Silwan are the best-known examples.

LAW condemns this dangerous and inflammatory move in the strongest possible terms. LAW points out that even if these settlers have purchased the house, their take-over of this home under police protection represents the Israeli government’s relentless strategy to establish “facts” on the ground before final status negotiations on Jerusalem begin. LAW condemns the government’s cynical attempt to justify this act through Israeli law, which was drafted to further Jewish interests in the city. It should be noted that Israeli law provides no avenue for Palestinians to reclaim the 70% of Jewish-West Jerusalem that was in their possession before 1948.

The presence of this radical settler group in the heart of Ras al-Amoud at this time is alarming. Already, clashes occurred last night and today between Palestinian residents and Israeli security forces guarding the settlers.

LAW-The Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights and the Environment is a non-governmental organization, dedicated to preserving human rights through legal advocacy. LAWE is also an affiliate member of the Paris-based International Federation for Human Rights.