Settler Cockroaches Want More Homes

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Jerusalem – Israel plans to build 250 units of settlement housing after it forcibly evacuates two East Jerusalem families, a lawyer for the Palestinian president’s office said on Tuesday.

Attorney Ahmad Ar-Ruwaidi said Israel plans to level a total of 27 homes on the family’s Shiekh Jarrah properties after the families are removed, “while the world talks about human rights, genocide, and ethnic cleansing.”

“Once again, Israeli judiciary proved that it is a tool in the hands of Israeli settlement organizations which are conducting settlement programs in Al-Bustan and other neighborhoods of Jerusalem,” he said.

The remarks come after the Israeli district court decided on Sunday to fine each family 50,000 US dollars, with a further fine of 50,000 shekels (12,500 US dollars) if they do not evacuate by 19 July, the date of a court hearing.

The eviction order was issued by “Hotza Laphoal” the Israeli institution that executes court orders.

The families are two of the 27 that live in a 28-building complex in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood. The court ruled in favor of a settler organization, Nahalat Shimon, which claims it is the owner of the buildings. The Palestinians are accused of not paying rent to these self-proclaimed landlords.

Sunday's decision, Ar-Ruwaidi said, is a challenge to the US administration and the whole international community. It is also blocks any initiative to renew peace talks as it would be impossible to talk peace in light of “demographic replacement,” demolition of homes, confiscation of properties, and collective expulsion of Palestinian residents.

Ar-Ruwaidi added that the Palestinian president acted at international levels, and would file a suit at the International Court of Justice in The Hague. Among the laws that apply to Jerusalem, he said, is protection of people under occupation according to Geneva and Hague conventions.

Meanwhile on Monday, the United States and European Union lodged official protests with the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs over the eviction orders source