JERUSALEM MUNICIPALITY CARRIES OUT TWO HOME

C O N F I D E N T I A L JERUSALEM 001217 SIPDIS NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE AND IPA. NSC FOR SHAPIRO/KUMAR E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/15/2019 TAGS: IS KPAL KWBG PGOV PHUM PREL PTER SUBJECT: JERUSALEM MUNICIPALITY CARRIES OUT TWO HOME DEMOLITIONS IN EAST JERUSALEM REF: JERUSALEM 965 Classified By: Deputy Principal Officer Greg Marchese for reasons 1.4 ( b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary. The Jerusalem Municipality, together with the Israeli Border Police, carried out two home demolitions in East Jerusalem on July 13. The Jerusalem Mayor's office denied responsibility for the demolition orders, saying the Municipality only executed orders issued by the GoI Interior Ministry in one case, and by a court in the other case. Three homes in East Jerusalem have been demolished so far in July, following the demolition of five East Jerusalem homes in June. End Summary. Two homes demolished on July 13 -------------- ¶2. (C) Jerusalem City Council member and Coordinator for the Israeli Committee Against Home Demolitions (ICAHD) Meir Margolit told PolOff on July 13 that two East Jerusalem homes had been demolished that day. The Displacement Working Group (DWG) confirmed to PolOff that the Jerusalem Municipality, together with the Israeli Border Police, demolished the home of a family of seven in the al-Ashqariya neighborhood of Beit Hanina on the morning of July 13. According to the DWG, the family reported that they had not received a warning notice or a demolition order before the demolition took place. The DWG also confirmed that the Jerusalem Municipality and Israeli Border Police demolished two rooms of the home of a seventeen-person family in the Wadi al-Hilwah neighborhood of Silwan. The DWG reported that, in both cases, residents were injured trying to resist the demolitions. Demolition decisions taken by MOI, court -------------- ¶3. (C) Stephan Miller, Aide to Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, told PolOff July 13 that the Jerusalem Municipality did not order either of these home demolitions, although the Municipality assisted with the execution of the demolition orders. Miller said that the Beit Hanina demolition was ordered by the Israeli Ministry of Interior, and that a court ordered the demolition in Silwan after finding the two rooms to be additions in violation of zoning regulations. Miller said Mayor Barkat was not responsible for the decision to demolish in either case. PolOff told Miller and other Municipality contacts that the USG finds home demolitions unhelpful in the current environment. Three East Jerusalem homes demolished in July, five in June -------------- ¶4. (U) The July 13 demolitions are the second and third East Jerusalem home demolitions to have occurred in July. This follows the demolition of five East Jerusalem homes in June (reftel). WALLES