Wednesday 12 May 2010

Israeli Minister: No More Delays, We’ll Demolish Palestinian Homes in Jerusalem


12/05/2010 Israeli Internal Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch revealed during a Knesset session on Wednesday that the Israeli occupation police will soon be providing security to inspectors slated to demolish what he called “illegal” Palestinian homes in occupied Jerusalem.

The Israeli minister's comments came in response to a query submitted by Knesset Member Yariv Levin (Likud). He said the Jerusalem Municipality was not executing demolition orders issued against Palestinian houses, and asked if an order was given to the Israeli Police not to carry out the orders at this time.

Aharonovitch responded saying, "At the present time, there are no orders for the Israel Police not to execute the demolition orders. The Jerusalem District can allocate the force required for the execution, in coordination with operational considerations."

MK Levin then asked, "When will the police deploy the required forces to execute the orders?"

MK Talab El-Sana then asked if this would include the Israeli building known as Beit Yehonatan, and wanted to know why the law was not being enforced in the settlements.

In response to Levin's question, Aharonovitch said, "I will say this clearly: There is nothing preventing us, nothing preventing us from executing the signed demolition orders tomorrow morning. The police will assist and provide full protection for the execution of the orders."

The minister told Levin that the houses were not demolished in the past due to political considerations. "There were times in the past when the political echelon, myself included, thought the timing was not right to execute the order, because of one process or another," he said.

"So, it is not that the execution was not carried out, or that it was revoked, it was simply delayed. At this time I stand here and say, there are no delays, and it should be carried out in the coming days. There are already execution orders on the way, and you will see these things, I hope, in the coming days. This means, if there was a delay, it is no longer on the table, and the order will be executed."

In response to El-Sana's question, Aharonovitch claimed, "I say, regarding the enforcement, there is no discrimination; I am speaking in terms of the police's assistance, whether this addresses Beit Yehonatan, as you enquired, or the execution orders, as Knesset Member Levin mentioned. We are not the body that issues the orders. Be it the Interior Ministry, or the municipality, or any other body, we only assist the bodies that execute judicial court orders or administrative ones. We provide the assistance.”

"Regarding Beit Yehonatan, I say that, as far as I am concerned, any assistance requested by the city will be provided, we will provide the forces. We are not on the deciding side."

However, he stated that a situation could be created in which the police may request to postpone the demolition. "A situation could occur, as has happened in the past, and could happen in the future, that the police may ask not to execute the orders on certain days, due to a specific situation on the ground,,, Therefore, the operational considerations are in the hands of the district commander. This is not called cancelling, but postponing."

IOF troops round up 15 citizens, reinforce presence in OJ

[ 12/05/2010 - 06:10 PM ]

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- Israeli occupation forces (IOF) rounded up 15 Palestinian citizens in the West Bank during their routine daily arrest campaign, Hebrew daily Yediot Arhonot said on its website on Wednesday.

It added that the apprehended individuals were wanted for questioning.

Local sources, however, said that the number of detained citizens was much bigger, noting that the IOF soldiers rounded up 15 minors during a raid in Kufr Hares village, Salfit district, on charges of throwing stones at IOF troops.

The IOF soldiers also raided the districts of Jenin, Nablus, Qalqilia, and Bethlehem and detained civilians, eyewitnesses reported.
Meanwhile, IOF soldiers and policemen sent reinforcements to occupied Jerusalem on Wednesday especially in the Old City to secure a yearly march organized by Jewish settlers to commemorate what they call "reunification of Jerusalem", which was made back in 1967 after the IOF troops occupied the eastern sector of Jerusalem while they had occupied the western sector in 1948.

Jerusalemites fear the outcome of this march as settlers usually wreak havoc in the Palestinian markets, assault the merchants and civilians, break the locks of shops, and write anti-Arab slogans on the walls.

Tens of fanatic Jewish settlers on Tuesday night had stormed Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in occupied Jerusalem under protection of IOF troops.

Locals said that the settlers headed to the Palestinian homes, which were seized from the Kurd, Hanun, and Ghawi families.

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