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Tensions build in East Jerusalem


Plan would demolish homes to create park


by Joel Greenberg in jerusalem


I 0 MILES Tel Aviv


WES T BANK


Jerusalem Detail EGYPT


GAZA STRIP


Built-up Israeli settlement Israeli settlement area Palestinian built-up area


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Jerusalem’s municipal boundary


ISRAEL Jerusalem West


Old City


Silwan


Ramallah 4


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JORDAN


Dead Sea


n a warren of cramped alleys in the crowded Palestinian neighborhood of Silwan, a slogan scrawled on a wall warns: “Silwan is in danger.” The danger, as residents see it,


is a city development plan that calls for the demolition of 22 homes to make room for a park that would flank a promenade of


Mediterranean Sea


Haifa 30 LEB.


Sea of Galilee


ISRAEL


Golan Heights


restaurants, art studios and shops. Mayor Nir Barkat says the plan


— aimed at attracting visitors to the historic valley near Jerusa- lem’s Old City where Silwan is lo- cated — will improve services to residents, provide jobs and boost commerce. Palestinians living there say it


is an Israeli ploy to evict them from the area and cement Israeli control of another part of East Je- rusalem, which Palestinians want as the capital of a future state. The proposed demolitions in


Jerusalem East


Silwan’s al-Bustan quarter have raised tensions there since the Je- rusalem city planning committee approved the development last week. The move drew condemna- tions from Washington and the United Nations, and clashes erupted in Silwan this week be- tween local youths and Israeli po- lice. The project is subject to two more votes in the Jerusalem dis- trict planning committee, a proc- ess that could take months. But its progress has already threat- ened to unsettle peace efforts, which are set to resume this week with another round of indirect talks mediated by U.S. special en- voy George J. Mitchell. Along with other Israeli build- ing plans in East Jerusalem that have heightened tensions with Washington, the plan for al-Bus- tan is likely to be raised during Prime Minister Binyamin Netan- yahu’s scheduled visit to the White House next week. Last week, Palestinian Author-


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Bethlehem SOURCE: B’Tselem THE WASHINGTON POST


ity President Mahmoud Abbas de- clared the plan “a stumbling block in the path of the political process” and urged the Obama administration to press Israel to stop the project. A State Department spokes- man said the plan was “the kind of action that undermines trust and potentially incites emotions and adds to the risk of violence.” And U.N. Secretary General Ban


THURSDAY, JULY 1, 2010


BAZ RATNER/REUTERS Children carry Palestinian flags at a protest Friday against Israeli plans to demolish 22 homes in the Silwan area near Jerusalem’s Old City.


Ki-moon called the proposed demolitions “provocative” and “contrary to international law.” In many ways, the al-Bustan


plan reflects the sensitivities sur- rounding any move by city hall in the Arab areas of this contested city. Israel annexed East Jerusa- lem after capturing it from Jor- dan in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, a move that has not been recog- nized internationally. And while Israel claims the entire city as its indivisible capital, its activities in East Jerusalem are often subject to international scrutiny. Barkat, a right-leaning entre- preneur, denied any political in- tent behind the plan for al-Bus- tan, which in city brochures is called the King’s Garden, a refer- ence to traditions linking the area to gardens of the biblical King Solomon. Although the valley has for years been zoned as an open area for public use, homes were built there in the 1990s because of overcrowding in Silwan, and


though technically illegal, they were not razed. The mayor and his aides point


out that under the development plan, 66 homes in al-Bustan that were built without permits would be preserved — 75 percent of the area’s illegal structures — and res- idents of the houses to be razed would be given permits to build homes elsewhere in the neighbor- hood. “There’s no catch,” Barkat said in an e-mailed response to ques- tions. “This is simply to provide proper planning and ensure a bet- ter quality of life for future gener- ations in Jerusalem.”


Along with improvements in roads, sewage treatment and oth- er infrastructure, the plan envis- ages a community center that would house a school, kindergar- tens, a day-care center, a fitness room and sports fields. But to the residents, all that is window dressing for a large-scale demolition project that they see


as part of a broader Israeli intent to evict Palestinians and replace them with Jewish settlers, who in recent years have moved into some homes in Silwan and are seeking to expand their presence in the area. The Silwan residents’ commit-


tee drew up an alternative that would preserve and legalize all the houses in the neighborhood while converting some into shops and restaurants, but Barkat re- jected it as inadequate. “He wants to reduce the per-


centage of Palestinians living in the neighborhood and turn it into a tourist Disneyland,” said Jawad Siyam, a neighborhood activist. In the garbage-strewn alleys, residents complained that the city sanitation department neglected their streets, pointing to a home- made sewage system they had built between the houses. Sami Ershied, a lawyer repre- senting al-Bustan residents, said the mayor’s ambitious plan has


leapfrogged the need for basic services in the ramshackle quar- ter.


“He’s welcome to come first and


collect the garbage — let’s start from that,” Ershied said. “To im- prove conditions in the neighbor- hood, there is no need to demol- ish a single house. This is a politi- cal plan meant to strengthen Israeli control around the Old City.” Jawad Abu Ramuz, a father of


five who has fended off a demoli- tion order against his unauthor- ized house, said residents had been forced to build illegally be- cause of an Israeli planning re- gime that severely limits the num- ber of building permits issued to Palestinians in East Jerusalem. “It’s inconceivable to destroy our homes to build a park,” he said. “People are more important than parks.”


Greenberg is a special correspondent.


U.S. envoy watches as Israel allows more goods to enter Gaza by Joel Greenberg


kerem shalom crossing, israel — Israel’s first steps toward easing its blockade of the Gaza Strip were welcomed Wednesday by the U.S. special en- voy to the Middle East as he vis- ited this crossing where goods are transferred to the Palestinian ter- ritory. Under intense international pressure after a deadly raid on an aid flotilla headed for Gaza, Israel formally announced June 20 that it would relax the blockade. Is- raeli officials here were keen to


show George J. Mitchell, who is mediating another round of in- direct Israeli-Palestinian talks, that steps have been taken to in- crease the supply of goods to the coastal strip, which is ruled by the radical Islamist group Hamas. Maj. Gen. Eitan Dangot, the Is-


raeli Defense Ministry’s top offi- cial handling connections to the Palestinian territories, told Mitch- ell that since the decision was made to ease the embargo, the number of trucks moving goods through Kerem Shalom, the main cargo crossing to Gaza, has in- creased by 30 percent. A total of 128 trucks carrying goods, fuel


and cooking gas passed through Kerem Shalom on Wednesday, up from about 90 each day before the blockade was eased, army officials said. Dangot told Mitchell that there are plans to increase the flow to 250 trucks a day. Before the blockade, about 400 trucks entered Gaza daily. The general said he had been


meeting with international aid groups to coordinate the transfer of materials for sewage and con- struction projects in Gaza. Israel has approved the entry of such supplies for projects supervised by international organizations af- ter previously barring shipments


of cement, which it said Hamas could use to build bunkers. Building materials are needed in Gaza to repair damage caused by an Israeli offensive there 18 months ago that was in response to persistent rocket attacks. Trucks lined up at Kerem Sha- lom on Wednesday were carrying glass kitchenware, baked goods and cables, and drivers said they were bringing in chocolates, soft drinks, clothing and shoes that had been barred in the past. Mili- tary officials said appliances such as refrigerators and microwaves were also being allowed in. “I saw firsthand today that


DIGEST MEXICO


Ex-policeman detained in attack on official The mastermind of an April ambush and grenade attack on a high-


ranking public security official in drug-plagued Michoacan state has been arrested, federal authorities said Wednesday. The perpetrator was a police officer. Miguel Ortiz Miranda, known as “El Tyson,” worked for the Michoa-


can state police from 1999 to 2008, when he resigned. Investigators said that since 2005, Ortiz had also been a captain in


the hyper-violent drug cartel La Familia, which operates an archipela- go of clandestine methamphetamine factories and traffics narcotics to the United States. On April 24, the state’s public security secretary, Minerva Bautista,


was returning from a state fair with her bodyguards when her convoy of armored sport-utility vehicles was attacked by as many as 40 com- mandos, who unleashed more than 2,700 rounds of rifle fire. They also lobbed grenades at Bautista. One landed in her vehicle but did not ex- plode. Four people died, including two bodyguards. Bautista was wounded. At a news conference, the federal police’s anti-drug chief, Ramón Pe- queño García, said Ortiz had confessed and told authorities that La Fa- milia wanted Bautista killed because changes she was making among the ranks of the state police would disrupt cartel activities. Ortiz said he was trained in the use of firearms and survival tech- niques by former members of the Mexican military at training camps in the mountains of Michoacan. The lessons, he said, were accompa- nied by self-help courses and Bible readings.


—William Booth IRAN


2 given death penalty for prison killings


A military court has convicted and sentenced to death two peo- ple charged with torturing and killing three anti-government protesters in prison, Iran’s judi- ciary said Wednesday.


Authorities initially denied the abuse claims, but public anger flared in August after influential


conservative figures in the cler- ical hierarchy condemned the mistreatment of detainees and Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, ordered the clo- sure of Kahrizak prison, where the protesters had been held. A report on the Iranian judi-


ciary’s Web site said the military court sentenced nine others in the case to flogging or prison terms, while one person was ac- quitted.


—Associated Press PHILIPPINES


New president vows to curb poverty, graft Benigno Aquino III, sworn in


Wednesday as the Philippines’ 15th president, promised to pros- ecute the corrupt and banish poverty as he urged Filipinos to help him in a job he likened to a biblical burden. The son of two Philippine de-


mocracy icons, Aquino, 50, suc- ceeds Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, whose nine-year tenure was rocked by failed coup attempts and allegations of corruption and rights abuses, which she denied. About 500,000 people attend- ed Aquino’s oath-taking in Ma- nila, police said. Aquino aimed his speech at the many Filipinos weary of the nation’s enduring problems, including Islamist and communist insurgencies. —Associated Press


NEPAL


Premier steps down under pressure


Nepal’s prime minister an- nounced his resignation Wednes- day, bowing to pressure from op- position Maoists who have been demanding his ouster in parlia- ment and in street protests. Madhav Kumar Nepal said in a speech that he is resigning to break a political deadlock and shore up the peace process that ended years of Maoist insurgency


JAY DIRECTO/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE VIA GETTY IMAGES


Backers of Benigno Aquino III make the “L” sign for “Fight” during his swearing-in ceremony at the Luneta Grandstand in Manila.


in the Himalayan nation. The Maoists, former rebels who won the most seats in 2008 elections, are seeking a new gov- ernment that they would head. —Associated Press


India moves to curb unrest in Kashmir: India extended a cur-


few across most of the part of Kashmir it controls and deployed thousands of troops to quell fresh anti-India protests that are spreading to other parts of the disputed Himalayan region.


Two police officers charged in Egyptian protester’s death: Two


plainclothes police officers were charged with illegal arrest and brutality in the death of busi- nessman Khaled Said, 28, in Al- exandria last month. The charges marked the first government ac- knowledgment of possible police wrongdoing in the case, which has drawn the attention of gov- ernments and rights activists.


British court limits troops’


rights: Britain’s Supreme Court overturned a ruling that soldiers are protected by human rights laws at all times, reversing a deci- sion the government had said could hinder military decision- making. The court said such laws apply only when soldiers are at a British military base or hospital.


French prosecutors seek 10-


year term for Noriega: Former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega should be jailed for 10 years for laundering millions of dollars in drug money through French banks, a French prosecu- tor said. Noriega spent 20 years in U.S. custody for drug traffick- ing and was extradited to France in April.


Bomber targets Chechen president: A suicide bomber blew himself up in Grozny, the capital of Russia’s restive Chech- nya region, outside a theater where the Kremlin-appointed president was waiting for a con- cert to begin. President Ramzan Kadyrov was not injured. —From news services


progress is being made,” Mitchell said after touring the crossing. “As President Obama said, the situa- tion in Gaza was unsustainable and demanded fundamental change. We welcome these chang- es. As implementation proceeds, these arrangements should sig- nificantly improve conditions for Palestinians in Gaza.” The easing of the blockade has so far not allowed in raw materi- als for industrial and food pro- duction, nor has it permitted ex- ports or free movement of people out of the territory. A naval block- ade also remains, a measure Israel says is necessary to prevent arms


smuggling by sea. “Israel has legitimate security concerns,” Mitchell said. “The United States strongly reaffirms Israel’s right to self-defense, and we support international efforts to prevent the trafficking of arms and ammunition into Gaza.” Israel first imposed a blockade on Gaza after soldier Gilad Shalit was captured by militants from Hamas and allied groups in a cross-border raid in June 2006. The blockade was tightened after Hamas seized power in Gaza a year later.


Greenberg is a special correspondent.


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