Middle East Monitor / July 8, 2022
Palestinian attorneys, yesterday, prevented attempts by Jewish settlers to evict Palestinian families from their homes in the East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah, reported Wafa News Agency.
The Ministry of Jerusalem Affairs said in a statement that “Palestinian attorneys foiled Israeli [Jewish] settlers’ attempts to drive the Ja’oni, Qassem, Al-Kurd and Skafi families out of their houses in the neighbourhood.”
It added that the attorneys successfully secured an Israeli Supreme Court decision rejecting the settlers’ petition to reconsider the court’s previous decision, which halted the eviction of the four Palestinian families in the Kerem Al-Jaouni area of the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood.
According to the ruling, the Al-Kurd, Al-Jaouni, Skafi and Qassem families will remain in their homes as the Israeli Ministry of Justice examines the ownership documents submitted for the Sheikh Jarrah plots in question. According to Al Jazeera, this process could take years, if it is ever finished.
The residents of the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood live in a disturbing atmosphere, as they are threatened with forced eviction and demolition of homes, in addition to the settlers’ continuous provocations.
Palestinian attorneys have been working for years to ensure Sheikh Jarrah residents are not thrown out of their homes imminently.
Last year, the threat of eviction of Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah sparked weeks of violence, culminating in Israel’s brutal 11-day military assault on the Gaza Strip, which killed 230 Palestinians, including 65 children.
Lawyers working to evict Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah are said to be financed by right-wing NGOs that are working to populate the neighbourhood with Jewish settlers.
