Jerusalem – Page 4 – HolyLandJustice.org

Wed, Mar 28, 2018Thu, Mar 22, 2018

Trump’s plan to relocate US embassy to Jerusalem stuck in red tape

1-5934188-4054624155 — A US flag flies over part of the the consulate compound in Jerusalem. (photo: Ammar Awad / Reuters)

The Israeli Finance Minister is promoting an emergency move that would bypass planning regulations.

By Yael Darel | Haaretz | Mar 22, 2018

“It is not at all certain that the effort now underway to convert the consulate to an embassy meets the standard of the law.”
— Yossi Miller, Israeli attorney specializing in planning and building law

Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon said he was seeking an exemption from planning regulations to ensure that the U.S. consulate in Jerusalem can be upgraded to become the American embassy in time for Israel’s 70^th anniversary celebrations on May 14, 2018.

Kahlon said he has asked the National Planning Committee, chaired by Avigdor Yitzhaki, to impose a rarely used exemption in the National Planning and Building Law empowering him to request the exception and hoped the committee would approve the measure when at an emergency meeting next Tuesday.

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Sun, Mar 25, 2018Wed, Mar 21, 2018

Israel moves to strip 12 Palestinians of Jerusalem residency

6e5e928074d24d2da079ba5def28c6f5_18 — There are 420,000 Palestinians living in occupied East Jerusalem, who are treated as foreign immigrants by Israel. (photo: Ammar Awad / Reuters)

The interior minister says he intends to revoke residency of Palestinians, accusing them of involvement in “terror.”

By Al Jazeera | Mar 21, 2018

“East Jerusalem is considered occupied territory under international humanitarian law (IHL) — like all other areas of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip — and its Palestinian residents are a protected civilian population. It is therefore illegal under IHL to impose upon them an obligation of loyalty to the occupying power, let alone to deny them the permanent residency status on this basis.”
— Adalah, a Palestinian rights group in Israel

Under a recently enacted law, Israel’s Interior Minister Aryeh Deri has expressed his intentions to strip the residency status of 12 Palestinians in Jerusalem, accusing them of being involved in “terror.”

The law, passed two weeks ago, gives the interior minister the power to strip the residency documents of any Palestinian on grounds of a “breach of loyalty” to Israel.

It will also apply in cases where residency status was obtained on the basis of false information, and in cases where “an individual committed a criminal act” in the view of the interior ministry.

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Sun, Mar 25, 2018Wed, Mar 21, 2018

A Palestinian mother’s open letter to Melania and Ivanka Trump

qalandia-mom-and-kid — A Palestinian mother and her child walk past the Israeli Army’s Qalandiya checkpoint as clashes take place. (photo: Oren Ziv / Activestills.org)

Mrs. Trump, imagine yourselves in my position. What would you do?

By Dalal Erakat | +972 Magazine | Mar 21, 2018

Mothers are advised to tell the truth. That was okay until my kids asked if Israeli soldiers could enter our city at night and harm us at anytime. I did not want to say yes, but I realized that as a Palestinian mother I could not hide the reality of occupation from them. So I told them the truth. As a mother, I don’t want my kids to lose faith in me, but at the same time, I can’t stop thinking about how they are just kids: they deserve a decent childhood and upbringing away from all the violence and insecurity of the ongoing conflict.

Raising kids in Palestine is exhausting — not just physically but also mentally. For as soon as kids become aware of the reality surrounding them, at around the age of three or four, every Palestinian mother must find explanations to help them comprehend what’s going on around them.

Even a simple trip from the West Bank to Jerusalem requires a strategic plan, especially after Mr. Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Couldn’t Mr. Trump have declared Jerusalem to be an open, global city as way of resolving the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians? How do you explain all this to a four-year-old?

March 21 is Mother’s Day in Palestine, which is why I am writing to you, Melania and Ivanka.

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Sat, Mar 24, 2018Wed, Mar 21, 2018

Israeli police arrest 8 for not preventing fatal stabbing in Jerusalem

1-5913510-4264817023 — Police at the scene of the stabbing in Jerusalem. (photo: Olivier Fitoussi / Haaretz)

Residents and market vendors between ages 15–67, had been brought in for questioning, and were arrested on a charge of failing to prevent a crime.

By Nir Hasson | Haaretz | Mar 20, 2018

“The Israel Police will complete the investigation and bring to justice those who could have prevented or limited the attack, which may well have saved the life of the victim.”
— Israel Police statement

The police arrested eight residents of Jerusalem’s Old City suspected of failing to intervene in Sunday’s fatal stabbing attack near the entrance to Temple Mount, the city’s police spokesman said Tuesday.

Those arrested, residents and market vendors between ages 15–67, were brought in for questioning to the police station on a charge of failing to prevent a crime, which is considered a misdemeanor in Israel.

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Sat, Mar 10, 2018Fri, Mar 9, 2018

Israel passes law to strip residency of Jerusalem’s Palestinians

ba6c2abaca83410097e670cca5ad4a46_18 — Israel’s Interior Minister Aryeh Deri will now have the power to revoke residency of Palestinians in Jerusalem (photo: Ammar Awad / Reuters)

Palestinians slam new “breach of loyalty” legislation as “extremely racist” and a violation of international law.

By Al Jazeera | Mar 7, 2018

Despite Israel’s claims that occupied East Jerusalem is part of its “eternal, undivided” capital, the Palestinians who are born and live there do not hold Israeli citizenship, unlike their Jewish counterparts.

The Israeli parliament has passed a law that allows the minister of interior to revoke the residency rights of any Palestinian in Jerusalem on grounds of a “breach of loyalty” to Israel.

The bill, ratified on Wednesday, will also apply in cases where residency status was obtained on the basis of false information, and in cases where “an individual committed a criminal act” in the view of the interior ministry.

Under the new measure, Israel’s Interior Minister Aryeh Deri, leader of the ultra-Orthodox political party Shas, will be able to strip the residency documents of any Palestinian whom he deems a threat.

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Sat, Mar 10, 2018Fri, Mar 9, 2018

New US embassy may be in Jerusalem — but not in Israel

merlin_134481873_d4ddba23-1ac3-4e0e-b26c-d359fd161c78-master768 — The former Diplomat Hotel, now part of the United States consular compound in Jerusalem, was built on disputed territory. (photo: Thomas Coex / Agence France-Presse / Getty Images)

The site of the US diplomatic compound is in occupied territory that has never been formally incorporated into Israel.

By Isabel Kershner | The New York Times | Mar 7, 2018

“Much more important than what the State Department says, it is what their actions say. You don’t build an embassy in territory that is not sovereign to Israel.”
— Eugene Kontorovich, director of international law at the conservative Kohelet Policy Forum in Jerusalem

In two months, the United States plans to open a new embassy to fulfill President Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

There’s just one problem: The embassy may be in Jerusalem, but it may not be fully in Israel.

The diplomatic compound that will serve as the American Embassy until a permanent site is found lies partly in a contested zone known as No Man’s Land.

No Man’s Land encompasses the area between the armistice lines drawn at the end of the 1948–49 war and was claimed by Jordan and Israel. Israel won full control of it in the 1967 war, so the United Nations and much of the world consider it occupied territory.

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Thu, Mar 8, 2018Wed, Mar 7, 2018

Evangelicals deeply concerned about US recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel

3b9d4f989d737741220c0589afd62601 — The Old City of Jerusalem. (photo: G Adventures)

Multiple Christian organizations express their opposition to recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Press Release|Religion News Service | Feb 22, 2018

Given the rich heritage of this city and its spiritual significance to the Jews, Christians, and Muslims of the Holy Land, we hope that Jerusalem will be able to serve as the capital for both Israel and Palestine.

As followers of Christ, we share a hope that the Holy Land — the birthplace of our Lord and Savior and the Promised Land of the Israelite Patriarchs — will be a land of peace where divine justice, as expressed through the Jewish prophets, can reign. We recognize the historical significance of this land to the Jewish people, who after generations in exile looked to return to the land to secure their physical safety and spiritual redemption. We also affirm the presence of an indigenous Arabic speaking community in the land that has been present since the time of Pentecost (Acts 2:11).

It is therefore with the deepest concern that we are witnessing unprecedented actions by the United States government that — while supported by many good-meaning people within the Church — may inadvertently jeopardize the lives and future security of the peoples of the Holy Land. We therefore cannot support President Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel absent a comprehensive peace agreement between the Israelis and Palestinians.

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Wed, Mar 7, 2018Mon, Mar 5, 2018

Guatemala will move its embassy to Jerusalem in May

780x438-n_cbea96a5d9cafa78ad6268fd984d267e — Eighty-seven countries have embassies in Israel, none of them are in Jerusalem. (photo: DeAgostini / Getty Images)

Guatemala will be the second country to move its embassy to Jerusalem.

By Jenna Lifthits | The Weekly Standard | Mar 4, 2018

“In May of this year, we will celebrate Israel’s 70th anniversary, and under my instructions two days after the United States moves its embassy, Guatemala will return and permanently move its embassy to Jerusalem.”
— Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales

Guatemala will relocate its embassy to Jerusalem in May, two days after the United States is slated to make the same move, the country’s president said Sunday.

“It is important to be among the first, but it is more important to do what it right,” he said.

Morales first announced the move in late December, following in the footsteps of the Trump administration. Guatemala was one of nine countries to vote against a December United Nations resolution rejecting the U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

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Mon, Mar 5, 2018Mon, Mar 5, 2018

Prince William to make historic visit to Israel and Palestine

2747 — Prince William addresses the Royal Foundation Forum in London. (photo: Chris Jackson / PA)

The Duke of Cambridge is due to arrive this summer, the first official visit ever by British royals to Israel or the Occupied Territories.

By Oliver Holmes | The Guardian | Mar 1, 2018

The visit [will be] an opportunity for the Duke of Cambridge to travel to areas of Jerusalem annexed by Israel, see illegally built settlements and understand the UK’s historical role in the conflict.

Prince William will become the first British royal to make an official visit to Israel and Palestine, an unexpected move given that political sensitivities in the region have stalled a formal trip for decades.

Kensington Palace said in a tweet that the Duke of Cambridge would visit later this year as part of a Middle East tour. The high-profile visit was “at the request of Her Majesty’s government and has been welcomed by the Israeli, Jordanian and Palestinian authorities,” it added.

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Mon, Mar 5, 2018Mon, Mar 5, 2018

US moving embassy to Jerusalem on the wrong day

cc45szsspbhjfccgqiernyf6mq — Celebrating Israeli Independence Day in 2012, which that year fell on Apr 26 on the Gregorian calendar. (photo: Jack Guez / AFP / Getty Images)

The US is moving its embassy on May 14, but Israel is celebrating its independence on Apr 18.

By Noga Tarnopolsky | Los Angeles Times | Feb 24, 2018

“They deliberately chose a tragic day in Palestinian history, the Nakba, as an act of gratuitous cruelty adding insult to injury.”
— Hanan Ashrawi

Israel declared independence on May 14, 1948, so why is it celebrating its 70^th anniversary on April 18?

And why are Palestinians infuriated by the Trump administration’s decision to move the American Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem on May 14?

The answer lies in two calendars.

Israel marks its public holidays using the Hebrew calendar. May 14, 1948, corresponds to the fifth day of the Jewish month of Iyar in the year 5708.

This spring the fifth day of Iyar — in the year 5778 — lines up with April 18. Israel will celebrate with parties, barbecues, fireworks over the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, and an air force flyover along Tel Aviv’s shore.

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