The Israeli occupation authorities do not stop developing any new proposals to evacuate the village of Khan al-Ahmar, east of occupied Jerusalem, and forcibly displace its residents, in preparation for the establishment of the "Greater Jerusalem" project.

Israeli officials officially presented a proposal to the residents of Khan al-Ahmar, to evacuate the village and move them to a wider area a few hundred meters from their current location, so that they would remain in the same area between Jerusalem and Jericho, according to the Hebrew newspaper, Yediot Aharonot.

According to the newspaper, the new place to which the people of the village will be relocated is adjacent to the current site, and the main street separates them, claiming that relocation is the most effective solution, especially as it allows them to maintain the same lifestyle they currently live.

It quoted sources familiar with the issue that, "If the proposal is agreed upon, it will be transferred to the Israeli political level for discussion and then approval," noting that the proposal was drawn up according to the "Civil Administration" maps, and the areas have been defined for the families residing there.

The current location of the village constitutes a link in the lands between Jerusalem and Jericho, and its displacement means the elimination of the possibility of an undivided Palestinian state in this area.

According to Palestinian observers, the evacuation of Khan al-Ahmar will be a prelude to the evacuation of the remaining 26 Bedouin communities surrounding Jerusalem, which are being weighed down by the occupation's attacks and its systematic and continuous daily practices against them.

Over the past years, residents have resorted to the occupation courts to obtain precautionary orders to postpone the demolition, which was approved by the Supreme Court of Occupation in May 2018, and were able to postpone by the Palestinian popular movement and international pressure.

However, two years ago, the court issued another decision to evacuate it, and Benjamin Netanyahu pledged to implement this on more than one occasion.

Ethnic Cleansing

The head of the Khan al-Ahmar village council, Eid al-Jahalin, reported to Safa that "the occupation authorities had offered the residents several proposals to evacuate the community, but they rejected them altogether, stressing that the residents would resist any new ideas or plans to displace them from their homes."

He added, "the occupation government is seeking to fulfill their dream of establishing Greater Jerusalem on the lands of East Jerusalem up to the Dead Sea, by removing Bedouin communities and displacing Palestinians from the area."

Khan al-Ahmar is located in Area C between occupied Jerusalem and Jericho, and near the settlements of Ma'ale Adumim and Kfar Adumim. It covers an area of ​​40 dunums and includes more than 40 families who live in tents and tin houses and other caravans funded by European Union.

Its residents come from the Negev desert, and they inhabited the Jerusalem Valley in 1953, after the forced displacement of their lands, and the threat of displacement continues to haunt them today, in implementation of the settlement project called "E1".

According to al-Jahalin, the Israeli project to displace the population will isolate Jerusalem from the West Bank, preventing any geographical contiguity between them, as well as separating the northern and southern West Bank.

Only the eastern gate of Jerusalem remains after the occupation authorities have besieged it from its three sides with settlements.

He stressed that the occupation authorities have been practicing for years a systematic process of displacement and ethnic cleansing against the Palestinians in Jerusalem, specifically the residents of Khan al-Ahmar, and they continue a policy of harassment of citizens and targeting them by various means.

He indicated that the Civil Administration of the Occupation has embarked on a new policy towards demolishing homes in Khan al-Ahmar, without referring to the law and the courts of occupation, so that any house that has been built less than two months will be demolished, warning at the same time of the danger of this procedure.

"We will remain here and will not leave. Even if the occupation demolishes our homes, we will rebuild them. We will not allow our displacement again," Al-Jahalin stressed.

The occupation authorities consider the lands on which the Bedouin Khan al-Ahmar is located "state lands," and claim that it was "built without a permit."

 

Source : Safa