Israel issues eviction order against three Palestinian families in Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah

JERUSALEM: The Israeli occupation authorities notified today three Palestinian families to evict their homes in Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of the occupied city of Jerusalem, in occupied East Jerusalem, for the benefit of the colonist militias. The municipality gave the three families until mid-July to implement the decision. The targeted houses are inhabited by three families consisting of 20 members. A member of the Sheikh Jarrah Neighborhood Defense Committee, owner of one of the targeted homes, Saleh Diab, said that the Jerusalem Magistrate Court held a hearing regarding the case at the end of last May, during which the court judge was informed that there was a decision from the Israeli Supreme Court to freeze the decision regarding the evacuation of 28 families from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood. Diab added that The Nahalat Shimoun Colonial Association exerted pressure on the magistrate court judge, forcing him to look into the case again. He gave the family lawyer and the colonists' lawyer 4 months to respond to the allegations. Today, the judge issued the decision to evacuate the three families from their homes in the neighborhood, Diab added. He added that the three families have been living in the houses for 56 years, and began their struggle in the courts to prove their rights since 2009 after receiving judicial notices. For years, the Israeli occupation authorities have been trying to displace the residents of the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in occupied Jerusalem in various ways. However, they refused to do so, clinging to their homes despite all the strict restrictions imposed on them by the occupation. More than 500 Palestinians living in 28 houses in the neighborhood are facing threats of forced expulsion at the hands of settlement associations backed by the Israeli government and its judiciary system. Source: Palestine News and Information Agency – WAFA