Reprieve for East Jerusalem Palestinian Family

by Stephen Lendman (stephenlendman.org - Home - Stephen Lendman)

Good news is rare in Palestine, often fleeting when occurs.

For the moment the Shamasna family can exhale - though likely not for long. A previous article explained Ayoub and Fahima lived in their East Jerusalem home for 53 years, raising their eight children there.

After a long legal struggle, it looked like their efforts were in vain - maybe ahead, but for now an Israeli magistrate court suspended their eviction after they courageously refused to leave.

The court ruled their eviction won't be enforced unless verifiable documentation proves their property belongs to Jews.

Israeli law permits Jews to claim ownership of pre-1948 Jewish-owned property - during the Ottoman and British Mandate period.

Palestinians displaced by Israel don't have the same right, discriminated against for not being Jewish - the way an apartheid system works.

Extremist settlers use every underhanded way possible to steal Palestinian land, including by claiming ownership - even against a Palestinian family living in their home for over half a century.

After earlier appeals were denied, Shamasna family lawyer Said Ghaliyeh claimed 84-year-old Ayoub's poor health if worsened by eviction could jeopardize Fahima's health.

The magistrate court suspended their eviction until further notice. It was ordered for August 9. The Shamasnas exhausted all legal avenues after racist Israeli courts, including its Supreme Court, ruled against their rights, saying they had to leave their homes. and land.

They were told if not willingly, they'd be forcibly removed and charged for eviction costs – including for police and municipality workers' pay.

According to Fatah official Hatem Abd al-Qader, the court-ordered temporary suspension wasn't to benefit them. Israeli courts up to its highest supported settler claims, rejecting Shamasna family ownership documents.

UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNWRA) spokesman Chris Gunness issued an August 15 statement saying:

"UNRWA is concerned about the humanitarian impact of the threatened eviction of the Shamasneh family from their home in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah. We appeal to the Israeli authorities to reconsider their decision." 

"The members of the Shamasneh family are longstanding Palestine refugee residents in East Jerusalem, which is occupied territory and affected by continued settlement expansion contrary to international law." 

"It is a matter of deep concern that Palestine refugees who have already endured multiple displacements should be subject to the humiliation of the kind inflicted by forced evictions."

The world community and UN are deplorably hesitant to challenge how deplorably Israel treats Palestinians.

Shamasna family reprieve may be short-lived. Court-ordered immediate eviction could come any time.

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