EU diplomats visit Palestinian families in Silwan
EU diplomats visited Batan al Hawa in Silwan in East Jerusalem on Wednesday to meet representatives of eight Palestinian families.
Those eight Palestinian families (45 people) are facing imminent risk of eviction from their homes by Israeli occupation authorities, five of them as soon as 18 December.
Today EU member states and likeminded countries visited Batan al Hawa in Silwan in East Jerusalem to meet representatives of eight Palestinian families (45 ppl) faced with imminent risk of eviction from their homes by Israeli authorities, five of them as soon as 18 December.1/2 pic.twitter.com/achGFeRKfa
— EU and Palestinians (@EUpalestinians) December 9, 2020
Batan al-Hawa is a community of 700 people, where Ateret Cohanim settlers claim that in the late 19th century the land was allocated by its Jewish owners to a Jewish trust for the benefit of the poor Yemenite Jews of Jerusalem. Today, in the name of the same trust, settlers seek to evict the Palestinian families and replace them with Israeli settlers.
The Jerusalem District Court two weeks ago rejected an appeal by some of these families against their eviction from their homes in favor of Ateret Cohanim settlers.
The EU diplomats reiterated that “forced eviction is illegal under international law and undermines the viability of the two-state solution and the prospects for lasting peace.”
In Batan al Hawa alone, a community of 700 ppl are faced with threats of eviction. The EU and likeminded reiterated that forced eviction is illegal under international law and is likely to undermine the viability of the two-state solution and the prospects for lasting peace.2/2
— EU and Palestinians (@EUpalestinians) December 9, 2020
