GICJ calls for an immediate end to violence and forced evictions against Palestinians

By: Irene Sacchetti /GICJ

Geneva International Centre for Justice (GICJ) calls on the international community to exert all the necessary pressure on Israel, the occupying power, to immediately stop its unacceptable aggressive response to protests in East Jerusalem. Also, we pressure Israel to remove the threat of eviction of Palestinian families from their homes, primarily in the East Jerusalem neighbourhoods of Sheikh Jarrah and Silwan as it is contrary to international law obligations and violating fundamental human rights.

Forced Evictions in East Jerusalem

The judaization of Jerusalem and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians is not history, but still happening. In fact, what is taking place in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, especially during the last few days, is not merely military occupation, but the reflection of violence, atrocities and human rights abuses perpetrated to Palestinian people. Palestinian families living in East Jerusalem neighbourhoods of Sheikh Jarrah and Silwan are at risk of expulsions and evictions by Israel, according to two discriminatory Israeli laws (the Absentee Property Law of 1950 and the Legal and Administrative Matters Law of 1970) that prohibit Palestinians from reclaiming their properties lost in the 1947-49 war and allow Israeli Jews to re-claim properties lost during the same war. These laws are not only inherently discriminatory, but also contrary to international humanitarian law and international human rights law.  In fact, as underlined by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, along with UN Experts Mr. Lynk, Special Rapporteur in the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territory occupied since 1967, and Mr. Rajagopal, Special Rapporteur on adequate housing, an occupying power is prohibited from confiscating private property belonging to the protected population and it must respect existing law of the territory, unless absolutely necessary to alter them. Moreover, forced transfer of population and forced evictions are grave breaches of the Fourth Geneva Convention as well as the right to adequate housing, a core human right in international law.

Violent Israeli police crackdown against protesters