King's Garden (Silwan)

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See also: King's Garden (historical)
For other uses, see King's Garden.

The King's Garden (Silwan) known in Arabic: البستان as Al-Bustan is a well-watered area south of the Wadi Hilweh neighbourhood in East Jerusalem. Al-Bustan is a neighbourhood of the extended Arab village of Silwan, and consists of something over 100 houses.[1]

A controversial proposed development project envisions demolishing the existing houses, which were erected without building permits, creating a park, while constructing new four-story apartment buildings around it, to which the current residents would be relocated.[1]

The area has been ruled by Jordan from 1948 until 1967 when it was occupied by Israel, who then, in a move condemned internationally, annexed it in 1980.

Displacement and demolitions[]

Al-Bustan is outlined in yellow

Silwan has expanded into Israeli designated[2] greenspace on the floor of the Kidron Valley. According to the Jerusalem municipality, there were no more than four buildings in 1967, but as of 2010 it is a ghetto with 120 families living in sub-standard housing erected without permits on public parkland and "Many of the existing buildings have no electricity, water or sewage infrastructures, and many were built without proper foundations."[3][1] According to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, "No one in the neighborhood denies that the homes were built illegally", but residents assert that they were forced to build illegally on the open land because the city refused to give building permits.[4] Residents of the houses slated for demolition acknowledge that their neighborhood is in a state of disrepair, but demand that the housing be improved, not demolished.[1] They have demanded legal permits for their existing, unauthorized homes and vowed that "We'll never leave our homes".[5] The Israelis approved a plan that would retroactively legalize ¾ of the Arab houses, allowing the homes to remain, and to designate some of the area as a historic park.[6] The city plan will accommodate all of the families in new housing to be constructed along the edges of the park.[1] The redevelopment plan proposed by Jerusalem mayor Nir Barkat calls for the establishment of a park to be called the King's Garden.[7]

UN Special Rapporteur Richard Falk said of the plan that "international law does not allow Israel to bulldoze Palestinian homes to make space for the mayor’s project to build a garden, or anything else."[8] Residentsbegan private negotiations with the city and in 2017, the residents and city hall agreed to the demolition of most of the buildings in the neighborhood to make way for the park on the condition that the current buildings not be torn down until building permits are issued for adjacent plots and until the new buildings are constructed.[9] However, in December 2020, several Palestinian residents in al-Bustan were served with demolition orders by the city, requiring them to demolish their own buildings or pay the cost of having the city carry out the demolition orders.[10] In February 2021, the Jerusalem municipality asked a court to reactivate demolition orders relating to more than 70 buildings housing 1,500 Palestinians in al-Bustan.[9]

On June 7, 2021, the Jerusalem municipality issued demolition orders affecting 13 families and 130 people, giving 21 days to evacuate and demolish their houses themselves.[11] On June 29, Israeli authorities demolished a butcher's shop, the first in what locals fear could be a string of demolitions.[12] The Norwegian Refugee Council issued a statement stating "Israeli authorities must immediately stop forcibly displacing people and demolishing their homes and property" and "Under the Fourth Geneva Convention, Israel has an obligation to protect civilians under its occupation and to refrain from destroying private property."[13] On June 8, 2021 UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged Israeli authorities to stop demolitions of Palestinian properties in occupied East Jerusalem.[14]

On 9 August 2021, a court order froze most demolition orders until February 2022 but allowed 16 homes to be razed immediately.[15]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e [1] Abe Selig, Gan Hamelech residents wary of Barkat's redevelopment plan, Feb. 16, 2010, Jerusalem Post. Accessed August 1, 2016
  2. ^ Gadzo, Mersiha. "Silwan demolitions: 'They're destroying Jerusalem'". www.aljazeera.com.
  3. ^ "King's Garden Plan Approved". Israel National News. 21 June 2010. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  4. ^ "Silwan residents unimpressed by 'king who walked around 3,000 years ago'", Nir Hasson, June 25, 2010, Haaretz.
  5. ^ "Gan Hamelech residents vow never to leave their homes", Abe Selig, March 4, 2010, The Jerusalem Post.
  6. ^ "King's Garden Plan Approved". Israel National News. 21 June 2010. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  7. ^ [2] Gan Hamelech residents wary of Barkat's redevelopment plan, Abe Selig, February 16, 2010, Jerusalem Post.
  8. ^ Demolitions, new settlements in East Jerusalem could amount to war crimes – UN expert June 29, 2010. UN News Centre
  9. ^ a b Hasson, Nir (March 17, 2021). "Jerusalem Seeks to Reactivate Demolition Orders in Palestinian Area, Backing Out of Agreement". Haaretz. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  10. ^ Husseini, Ibrahim (December 31, 2020). "Israel orders wave of new house demolitions in Silwan, Jerusalem". Al Jazeera. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  11. ^ "Demolitions begin in occupied East Jerusalem's Silwan". www.aljazeera.com.
  12. ^ Kareem Khadder. "Demolition in East Jerusalem neighborhood heightens tensions in the city". CNN.
  13. ^ "Israeli authorities demolish shop in Silwan, 15 families at imminent risk - occupied Palestinian territory". ReliefWeb.
  14. ^ "UN chief urges Israel to end demolitions in East Jerusalem". www.aa.com.tr.
  15. ^ "Israeli court freezes demolition of some Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem". 11 August 2021.

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