The Bulldozers Arrive, and the Squeeze Is On in East Jerusalem

Nothing can ruin the sensitive process of reconciliation between Israelis and Palestinians faster than attempts to build new Jewish settlements or to change the status quo in Jerusalem. Settlements and Jerusalem are two of the five unresolved issues that were to be addressed in final status talks to begin later this month.

The decision by the Israeli government to proceed this week with a large housing development in East Jerusalem, on land illegally occupied by Israel in 1967, runs contrary to the letter and spirit of the interim peace agreement between Israel and Palestinians. This is not my opinion; it is the opinion of the entire world as seen last week by the U.N. resolutions overwhelmingly condemning the project.

According to an Israeli former member of the Jerusalem City Council, Sarah Kaminker, only 13% of the land of East Jerusalem is available for Palestinian residence. The rest either has Jewish settlements--existing or planned--or is restricted.

More than 130,000 Israeli Jews are now living in settlements built by the Israeli government in East Jerusalem during the last 29 years. During this same period, Israel has not built a single apartment for Palestinians and instead is trying to remove Palestinians altogether from Jerusalem.

The settlement planned for Jabal Abu Ghneim, which the Israelis call Har Homa, will alter both the geography and the demography of the Holy City. Building 6,500 units exclusively for Jews in Arab East Jerusalem aims at creating a Jewish majority and at the same time blocking any physical connection between Jerusalem and the West Bank areas destined to become the Palestinian state.

What adds insult to injury is that the Netanyahu government is attempting to depopulate Jerusalem of its indigenous Palestinians.

I am one of tens of thousands of Palestinians who are threatened with loss of residency in Jerusalem. Even though I have lived here most of my 41 years, I am no longer certain that I will be allowed to continue.

Last August, I was scheduled to travel to South Africa for a conference on tolerance. When I applied for a return visa, I was told by an Israeli official that my residency ID was no longer valid, and that if I traveled, I would be allowed to return to Jerusalem only as a tourist. I appealed to the Israeli High Court and a one-time exception was made for me to travel. My residency status still has not been resolved.

This latest attempt by Israel at mass depopulation is based on a 1952 law regarding entry into Israel that the Ministry of Interior has now decided to apply to East Jerusalemites. The Israeli government has decided that many Palestinians born and raised in Jerusalem, and holding permanent residency identification cards, may no longer enjoy this basic birthright. More than one-third of today’s Jerusalem residents, including hundreds of American Palestinians, are affected by this policy.

It is no wonder that many Palestinian leaders and Israeli intelligence officials are concerned that this latest settlement decision might destabilize the region. Palestinian community leaders have been successful in keeping protests to Har Homa peaceful and nonviolent. They are hoping that the sponsors of the peace process will use their influence to put a stop to these confidence-destroying activities.

By driving Palestinians out of Jerusalem and building exclusive apartments for Jews, the Israeli government is using administrative and legal means to accomplish what the Serbs have been doing in Bosnia using violence.

Jerusalem is an important city to Palestinians and Israelis, to Jews, Muslims and Christians. The only way to deal properly with Jerusalem and its future is to stop taking unilateral actions and to search for solutions that can allow the people of the city and those who feel strongly about it to participate in deciding its future in an inclusive direction.