HOME DEMOLITIONS IN EAST JERUSALEM AND THE WEST

C O N F I D E N T I A L JERUSALEM 000686 SIPDIS NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE AND IPA. NSC FOR SHAPIRO/KUMAR. JCS FOR LTGEN SELVA E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/22/2024 TAGS: KWBG PGOV PREL PTER PHUM KPAL IS SUBJECT: HOME DEMOLITIONS IN EAST JERUSALEM AND THE WEST BANK REF: A. JERUSALEM 491 ¶B. JERUSALEM 249 Classified By: Consul General Jake Walles, per reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary. The GoI Ministry of Interior demolished a home in East Jerusalem April 22, and the Civil Administration demolished four structures in a Palestinian village southeast of Nablus. The number of home demolitions decreased in East Jerusalem in March and April following critical comments by USG officials, but the Municipality continues to issue demolition orders to existing homes. A representative of Mayor Barkat said the Municipality does not intend to conduct demolitions or evictions before it releases a new Jerusalem town plan for public review in May. End Summary. GOI DEMOLISHES PALESTINIAN HOME IN EAST JERUSALEM -------------- ¶2. (C) The Israeli Ministry of Interior demolished a Palestinian home in East Jerusalem's Jabal al-Mukabbar neighborhood the morning of April 22, according to home owner Ammar Hadidun. Hadidun told PolFSN April 22 that his home was demolished for lack of a building permit, in spite of his lawyer's efforts to prevent the demolition. He said he received no specific warning about the demolition, although he has been fighting in court since 2005 to save the house. The house was built in 2004 on land that was zoned as "open." ¶3. (C) Sachar Vardi, of the Israeli Committee Against Home Demolitions (ICAHD),told PolOff that the home was demolished around 9:30 a.m. in spite of a court hearing scheduled to discuss the case the morning of April 22. Vardi said ICAHD and the Hadidun family intend to submit complaints against the judge because she arrived late for the hearing and failed to act on the owner's petition until it was too late. Vardi said home demolitions continue in the area in spite of the fact that the residents of Jabal al-Mukabbar are working with an architect to submit a new town plan for their neighborhood. ¶4. (C) Stephan Miller, aide to Jerusalem Mayor Barkat, told PolOff April 22 that the Municipality was not responsible for the demolition in Jabal al-Mukabbar. He said Mayor Barkat is preparing to release a new Jerusalem city-wide town plan for public review in early May, and that no Municipality-enforced demolitions or evictions are likely to occur prior to that. Miller said the Municipality recognizes that considerable changes could occur in the new plan based on objections presented by local residents, and the Municipality wants the process to be open and fair. PALESTINIAN HOMES NEAR NABLUS DEMOLISHED BY CIVIL ADMINISTRATION -------------- ¶5. (C) Mayor of Tal al-Khashaba Jawdat Bani-Jaber told PolOff that the Civil Administration demolished four Palestinian residences in al-Ifjim, a village near al-Aqraba, southeast of Nablus, on April 22, displacing up to 100 people. (Note: These residences were near the area discussed in paras 5-6 of ref A. End note.) The residents of these buildings received orders to evacuate on April 20. One home owner said the bulldozers left the residents no time to remove their belongings from the houses. COMMENT -------------- ¶6. (C) At least 27 homes have been demolished in East Jerusalem and 19 in the West Bank this year. The rate of demolitions spiked in January and February and then decreased slightly in March and April following critical comments by USG officials, including Secretary Clinton. By comparison, fourteen homes were demolished in East Jerusalem and three in the West Bank in the last four months of 2008. The Municipality and Civil Administration have issued numerous demolition orders this year. The issuance of a demolition order generally results in lengthy and costly legal proceedings as Palestinian home owners try to prevent the demolitions. End comment. WALLES