Pushing Palestinians out of East Jerusalem, one family at a time

In five days, the Sumarin family--who live in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan--will lose their home.

A Palestinian resident of Silwan, an East Jerusalem neighborhood that faces land confiscations, home evictions, night raids by the army, and near daily arrests. East Jerusalem residents pay taxes to the municipality but receive little services in return (Photo: flickr/Melanie van der Voort)

For decades, the Sumarins have lived in Wadi Helweh, at the entrance of Silwan, a neighborhood in East Jerusalem. But one week ago, the family received an order telling them they must leave. If they don’t, they will face eviction by force.

Himnuta, a subsidiary of the Jewish National Fund (JNF-KKL), justifies the transfer by saying that the family lives in the house illegally. Himnuta claims that the building belongs to them.

“In 1984, my great grandfather Musa Abdullah, the owner of the house, died,” Mahmoud Sumarin explains to the Alternative Information Center (AIC), “He had a Jerusalem blue ID. His nephew and his family have been living here since his death. How did this property became an absentee property? How can it be confiscated?”

Twenty years ago, the state declared the house abandoned and transferred it to the Development Authority. In the same period, the Development Authority made an agreement with Himnuta: the state agency would receive Palestinian land and houses in Silwan in exchange for land in Wadi Ara, that the JNF-KKL donated to the State of Israel.

Once Himnuta officially obtained the land in Silwan, they donated it to Elad settlers’ association in East Jerusalem, the same organization involved in the archaeological project of the City of David. The Sumarin family home, one of a number that are threatened, is located just few meters from the entrance of the archaeological site and already surrounded by settlers.

“The first time we went to a court was in 1991,” Sumarin says, “and then again in 1995. In both cases we received papers and orders in Hebrew. The legal battle ended in 2003: after giving to the court all the documents proving clearly that the house is our property, the tribunal ruled in our behalf. We have the right to live here.”

But ten days ago, on Sunday 14th of November, agents from the Bailiff’s office of Jerusalem served the Sumarin’s with an eviction order: the 12 members of the family have to leave their house before the 28th of November or they will face a forcible eviction. Further, they have to compensate Himnuta for decades of “unpaid rent”: two millions shekel (almost 540.000 dollars).

The members of the Sumarin family are frightened. They don’t have anywhere to go.

“On the 28th we will not leave,” one woman tells the AIC. “We will fight, hoping that our lawyer succeeds to solve this situation in the next five days. We have the solidarity of the people, next Friday they will come here for the prayer.”

Twelve people live in the two story house, including five children, a pregnant women, and an old man suffering from diabetes.

“I haven’t slept in a week,” the woman continues, “for the fear of hearing the  Israeli soldiers... And for the children it is the same: they are not studying, they can’t pay attention at school”.

Mahmoud Sumarin adds that another family in Silwan has just received eviction orders, as well.

The approximately 15,000 Palestinian residents suffer frequent house demolitions and evictions, night raids by the Israeli army and near-daily arrests. A quarter of Silwan’s lands have been confiscated by Israel and given to the City of David project.

The Jerusalem municipality has additional plans for Silwan:  parking, parks, and archaeological sites that  celebrate the ancient Jewish presence in Jerusalem. And, already, more than 500 Jewish settlers live in Silwan.

“The idea is to create a sort of ring around the Old City,” Dawd, a member of the Health Work Committee, says to the AIC, “They are carrying out this project in different ways: house demolitions, forced evictions, revocations of the residency rights.

Dawd adds that lack of schools and public services are another way that the city of Jerusalem tries to push Palestinian residents out.

Several Palestinians who moved to Silwan when Israel started building the separation barrier are now moving back to the West Bank, Dawd says. “Those who have moved to this side of the [separation barrier] in order to maintain Jerusalem residency are going back now, because of the lack of jobs or because of the home evictions...”