Israel weighs confiscation of more Palestinian land
The government is considering confiscating privately-owned Palestinian land near the West Bank settlement of Ofra, contrary to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s pledge during his Bar-Ilan speech not to take such actions.
This announcement was made by the state prosecutor, in response to a High Court petition filed by a resident of the West Bank town Ein Yabrud and the human rights association Yesh Din. [continued…]
Settlers: Haredi struggle proves only violence works
Settlers cut down and torched some 15 trees near the West Bank Palestinian village of Burin on Tuesday, in what IDF forces believe was part of the extreme Right’s “price tag” policy, which seeks to make the Palestinian civilian population pay for the evacuation of outposts.
Meanwhile, rightists distributed a leaflet in the West Bank signed by “the residents of Judea and Samaria” with the title “Learn from the haredim, win the battle,” claiming that “only those who upturn tables win.”
The leaflet’s authors claimed that force must be used in order to achieve their objectives. “This is what the Arabs did in the intifada, and they received their Terror Authoirty on a silver platter. This is what the Druze did in Pekiin, and no one bothers them.
“This is what the haredim in Mea Shearim did, and the police folded. The time has come for us to internalize and understand this. You don’t win with love. A battle fought with hugs doesn’t achieve anything. Only with force will we prevail.” [continued…]
Most Arabs can’t buy most homes in West Jerusalem
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed this week that Jerusalem is an “open city” that permits all its inhabitants, Jewish and Palestinian, to purchase homes in both its eastern and western parts.
“Our policy is that Jerusalem residents can purchase apartments anywhere in the city. There is no ban on Arabs buying apartments in the west of the city, and there is no ban on Jews building or buying in the city’s east,” Netanyahu said in response to the U.S. request to halt a Jewish construction project in East Jerusalem.
An examination by Haaretz, however, presented a rather different situation on the ground. According to Israel Lands Administration rules, residents of East Jerusalem cannot take ownership of the vast majority of Jerusalem homes. When an Israeli citizen purchases an apartment or house, ownership of the land remains with the ILA, which leases it to the purchaser for a period of 49 years, enabling the registration of the home (“tabu”). Article 19 of the ILA lease specifies that a foreign national cannot lease – much less own – ILA land. [continued…]
