Tensions rise in east Jerusalem
Source: Agencies |
January 10, 2011, Monday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
BULLDOZERS demolished a hotel in an Arab east Jerusalem neighborhood yesterday to make way for a new Israeli enclave, moving ahead with a plan that has angered the Palestinians and the United States.
The Shepherd Hotel, purchased by a Jewish American millionaire in 1985, is to be replaced by 20 apartments for Israelis. Workmen and earth-moving equipment were knocking down the structure in the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, a frequent flashpoint of protests over Israeli policies.
Peace talks are currently stuck over Israeli construction in east Jerusalem, which the Palestinians claim as their future capital. The Palestinians say they will not renew talks without an Israeli settlement freeze that includes the area, which was captured along with the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war.
Israeli and Palestinian envoys are heading to Washington this week in an attempt to move talks forward, but the Palestinians say the envoys will not talk directly to each other.
Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat condemned the project. "As long as this government continues with settlement and acts like the demolition of the Shepherd Hotel there will be no negotiations," Erekat said.
The Shepherd Hotel project is funded by American millionaire Irving Moskowitz, a longtime patron of Jewish settlers.
The people behind the project "want to settle here and make the situation in Jerusalem even more problematic than it is now," said Mossi Raz, an Israeli peace activist and former lawmaker, at the -demolition site.
In recent years, settler groups have been moving more Israeli families into Palestinian neighborhoods in east Jerusalem, attempting to ensure the city will not be divided in a future peace deal. Several thousand settlers now live in Arab neighborhoods of the city under heavy guard.
That presence has led to tensions, and unrest in those neighborhoods has recently been on the rise.
Sheikh Jarrah is the scene of a weekly protest against the evictions of Palestinians to make way for settlers.
The Shepherd Hotel, purchased by a Jewish American millionaire in 1985, is to be replaced by 20 apartments for Israelis. Workmen and earth-moving equipment were knocking down the structure in the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, a frequent flashpoint of protests over Israeli policies.
Peace talks are currently stuck over Israeli construction in east Jerusalem, which the Palestinians claim as their future capital. The Palestinians say they will not renew talks without an Israeli settlement freeze that includes the area, which was captured along with the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war.
Israeli and Palestinian envoys are heading to Washington this week in an attempt to move talks forward, but the Palestinians say the envoys will not talk directly to each other.
Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat condemned the project. "As long as this government continues with settlement and acts like the demolition of the Shepherd Hotel there will be no negotiations," Erekat said.
The Shepherd Hotel project is funded by American millionaire Irving Moskowitz, a longtime patron of Jewish settlers.
The people behind the project "want to settle here and make the situation in Jerusalem even more problematic than it is now," said Mossi Raz, an Israeli peace activist and former lawmaker, at the -demolition site.
In recent years, settler groups have been moving more Israeli families into Palestinian neighborhoods in east Jerusalem, attempting to ensure the city will not be divided in a future peace deal. Several thousand settlers now live in Arab neighborhoods of the city under heavy guard.
That presence has led to tensions, and unrest in those neighborhoods has recently been on the rise.
Sheikh Jarrah is the scene of a weekly protest against the evictions of Palestinians to make way for settlers.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
