On August 9, another family from Batan al-Hawa was handed an eviction notice by a lawyer representing Ateret Cohanim.Īteret Cohanim is involved in strengthening Jewish roots in the heart of Jerusalem, the group`s executive director, Daniel Luria, told Al Jazeera. We`ve been paying rent to a Palestinian man, then his son, then his grandson for decades, said Abu Nab, who works in construction.Īccording to settlement watchdog Peace Now, the case is part of a larger scheme by Jewish settlers to seize 5,200 square meters in the area of Silwan`s Batan al-Hawa neighborhood, where an estimated 80 Palestinian families live in more than 30 buildings.Ī number of families living here are currently embroiled in legal proceedings, and residents fear Abu Nab`s eviction could create a precedent. Silwan has been the target of Jewish settler organizations since the late 1980s, when they started acquiring property there by various means, including legal battles and private purchases.Ību Nab`s family has been fighting to stay in their home since 2002, when the settler organization, Ateret Cohanim, filed a lawsuit alleging that the land where Abu Nab`s property sits had been registered as hekdesh, or Jewish religious property, since 1881. Three months ago, Jewish settlers moved into two homes on Abu Nab`s small housing block after they struck a financial deal with the families previously living there. Visible from the same terrace is Israel`s national flag, erected in front of a nearby home by settlers. Located just outside of Jerusalem`s Old City walls, Silwan`s narrow streets and simple, cinder-block homes stand in the shadow of al-Aqsa Mosque, whose dome can be seen from the terrace of Abu Nab`s house. My family has been renting this house since 1948, Abu Nab told Al Jazeera, noting his family had been previously expelled from the Jurat el-Anab neighborhood in present-day West Jerusalem, which fell under Israeli control after the Arab-Israeli war in 1948. Instead, he has erected a makeshift tent in front of his home, lined up plastic chairs, and ensured the supply of coffee never runs low for the friends and neighbors who visit every evening, amid a significant police presence. The ruling determined that Jewish settlers were entitled to the land, based on a presumption of historical Jewish ownership.īut Abu Nab says he has no intention of complying. Silwan, occupied West Bank - For days, neighbors, friends and family have been gathering at the home of Abdullah Abu Nab in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan, hoping to stop his family`s looming eviction.Ī recent ruling from Israel`s Supreme Court gave Abu Nab`s family-comprised of 16 people living in two separate homes-until August 11 to leave. Abdullah Abu Nab was ordered to leave his home to allow Israeli settlers to move in, but he refuses to comply.
Neighbors gather to protest West Bank eviction order. Palestine: Social Production of Habitat-Security