Call me psychic but I predicate this just isn’t going to end well
Since its Friday and I expect there will be protests in East Jerusalem today so I offer this cautionary tale for all Palestinian civil right groups. Jerusalem Post
The Jerusalem Municipality on Wednesday evening announced that Mayor Nir Barkat had agreed to carry out a court order to evacuate and seal Beit Yehonatan, a seven-story Jewish-owned structure built without the proper permits in the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan.
Barkat made clear his intention to do this in a letter sent on Wednesday to State Attorney Moshe Lador, who last week sent a letter to Barkat, demanding that he uphold the court order to evacuate and seal the building. Barkat had initially refused to do so.
So more Jews will now be evicted in East Jerusalem from premises which are legally owned by Jews. Now let us all join hands and sing a chorus of ‘we shall overcome’ and hurray for the rule of law…except lawfare is not a one way street in East Jerusalem:
The move will also nullify a recent plan suggested by the municipality, which would have changed the status quo in the neighborhood with regards to building permits, and would have made both Beit Yehonatan and most of the illegally-built Arab homes in the area legal.
In his letter to Lador, Barkat reiterated that the municipality’s plan would have made it possible to reduce the disagreement and friction surrounding illegal construction in Silwan by nearly 90 percent, and that carrying out hundreds of demolition orders in the area would create a “high potential for conflict” instead.
Barkat also made it clear that the municipality would implement the rule of law without discriminating between Arabs and Jews.
And the price tag for forcing the hand of Jerusalem municipality to adhere to the letter of the law rather than implement a municipal plan which had been worked out with the local neighbourhoods to legalized the structures which had been built ‘without permits’ in East Jerusalem? Ynet News:
However, Barkat added that he would also implement orders against 200 illegal structures built by Arabs in the area, so as not to act in a discriminatory manner.
Mazel Tov! What ever would we do without Israeli lefties and their progressive supporters? And I am sure the 200 homeless Arab families will be forever grateful for your continued support.
The seven storey building in Beit Yehonatan which is to be demolished is because they had a permit to construct a five storey building. They have no one to blame but themselves.
Municipal building codes are enforced all over the world. When arab residences are destroyed, its also for violating municipal regulations. Its only in Jerusalem where it becomes an international story. Even being evicted for non-payment of rent makes international headlines.
Even so, Zee it was a municipal matter which could have been resolved in another way – even sealing up the top two floors but no, a chance to evict Jews was too much an opportunity to pass up and now we will see hundreds left homeless out of a sense of misplaced spite which serves no one well.
It may not be the best solution, but having any level of government defy a court order is worse in the long run. Mayor Barkat is against the demolition but he’s not above the law and has no choice.