The Israeli occupation authorities continued to violate the individual and collective rights of Palestinians in the occupied Jerusalem, in general, and the right to proper housing and land, in particular, during the year 2007 under various pretexts such as the construction of the Segregation Wall, bypass roads, archeological excavations, building of colonies and un-licensing.
This policy of ethnic cleansing which commemorates the 40th anniversary of the occupation of the city is accompanied by a continuous building of new colonies and the expansion of the existing colonies in and around the city, such as Abu Ghuneim (Har Homa), Psigat Zeev, Givaat Zeev, Nof Zion, Kadamat Zion …etc, as well as the ongoing diggings and excavations in various parts of the old city, including the Haram Al Sharif compound.
The Land Research Center ( LRC), a Palestinian NGO and member of Habitat International Coalition, as part of its mandate of monitoring, documenting and writing about human rights violations, including the right to proper housing and land ownership, has documented the following housing violations at the hands of the Israeli occupation authorities in Jerusalem during 2008:
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The total of 97 housing units have been demolished and their occupants forcibly evicted. These housing units have the total surface area of 9946 square meters and the total of 373 rooms. As a result, 529 people were made homeless after being forcibly evicted from heir homes, of whom 311 are children under the age of 18.
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The total of 43 other structures, including stores, farms, pens, barracks and walls have been, also, demolished during the year 2007.
Compared to 2007, LRC had documented the demolition of 78 housing units during 2006. In addition, it had documented the demolition of 606 housing units during the period from 2000 – 2006.
The Destruction of property and demolition of Palestinian homes in the occupied Jerusalem by the Israeli authorities is contrary to international humanitarian law, particularly the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, and incompatible with article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Israel has signed and ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1966, and went in force in 1976. Israel therefore is obliged to apply its provisions in relation to the occupied Palestinian Territories, including Jerusalem. And Israel is also obliged, as the occupying military power, to abide by the provisions enshrined in the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, on the protection of civilians under occupation. The Land Research Center determined to:
1. Call on Israel, the occupying power, to put an end to violations of international humanitarian law and principles of the International Bill of Human Rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, including the occupied city of Jerusalem.
2. Demand that Israel stop the policy of Judaization, displacement and ethnic.
3. cleansing practiced against Palestinians of occupied city of Jerusalem, lift the closures and lockades on the city, stop the separation and dispersal of Palestinian families, institute family unification policy for Palestinians, cease and reverse all illegal actions and measures that violated the right of families and individuals as a result of the wall construction or other discriminatory measures, and to allow Palestinians freedom of movement and residence in any part of the occupied Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem.
4. Demand that the occupation authorities stop drilling activities, construction and demolition of buildings and of archaeological historical Arab and Islamic sites in the Old City of Jerusalem, under and around Al-Aqsa Mosque and in the vicinity thereof, and to stop construction of Jewish-only structure on stolen Palestinian land, and stop the violation of religious sanctities in Jerusalem and in other occupied Palestinian areas.
5. Call on the occupying power stop interfering with the freedom of worship, and to allow the worshipers access to the holy places to perform prayers, and practice religious rites in full freedom and without conditions.
6. Call on all parties, signatories to the Fourth Geneva Convention, to assume their legal and ethical responsibilities and fulfill their obligations, including action to compel Israel to respect and apply the Convention in the occupied Palestinian territories, under Article I of the Convention, and to provide immediate protection for Palestinian civilians from the continuing Israeli aggression.
7. Call on the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention to fulfill their legal obligations contained in Article (146) of the Convention relating to the prosecution of those responsible for grave breaches of the Convention, including war crimes, and in particular the prosecution of Israeli officials who perpetrate such crimes against the Palestinian people.
8. Urge the Secretary-General of the United Nations and all international organizations and bodies, regional organizations, Amnesty International, the Red Cross and other organizations concerned about human rights, to expose and to denounce these Israeli violations.
For further information, please visit our web site: www.lrcj.org , or contact LRC at: 02-2217239.
Prepared by
The Land Research Center
LRC
