1 july 2019
The US Ambassador to Israel, and longtime Israeli settlement financier, David Friedman, participated on Sunday in an underground excavation under the Palestinian neighborhood of Silwan, in East Jerusalem, actively participating in the illegal settlement action by bashing with a hammer a section of ancient underground wall located beneath Palestinian homes.
In addition to Ambassador David Friedman, the US “Peace Envoy” Jason Greenblatt also participated in the controversial and illegal excavation, along with Sara Netanyahu, the wife of Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who recently narrowly avoided prison time by negotiating a plea agreement in which she pleaded guilty to corruption charge.
The presence of US officials at the incident marks the first time that the US, or any country, has decided to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Old City of Jerusalem. The Old City was declared an international space open to all during the declaration recognizing the state of Israel in 1948. But since 1967, Israeli forces have occupied the mainly Palestinian city and have used many measures, legal and illegal, to push out the Palestinian residents of the city.
This archaeological dig is to excavate a tunnel that Israeli state archaeologists claim was used by Jewish pilgrims thousands of years ago.
According to a statement by the Israeli non-profit Emek Shaveh, the group believes that this incident with the U.S. officials is “a further step in American support for the pro-settlement policy in Jerusalem, and particularly the touristic-settlement projects….It is inexcusable to ignore the Palestinian residents of Silwan, carrying out extensive excavations of an underground city and to use such excavations as part of an effort to tell a historical story that is exclusively Jewish in a 4,000 year-old city with a rich and diverse cultural and religious past”.
In an editorial in the leading Israeli newspaper Ha’aretz, the paper’s editors write, “The participation of American diplomats at an event sponsored by a right-wing group in East Jerusalem constitutes de facto recognition of Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem’s historic basin. If anyone had any doubts about that, Friedman made clear in an interview with the Jerusalem Post that, ‘The City of David is an essential component of the national heritage of the State of Israel.” Giving it up, even in the context of a peace agreement, he said, “would be akin to America returning the Statue of Liberty.’”
The problem with this argument, according to the editors of Ha’aretz, is that, “This recognition doesn’t just put the American administration on the extreme right of the Israeli political map – thus undercutting the claim that American can be an unbiased broker between Israel and the Palestinians – but it also ignores the complicated reality in Silwan, East Jerusalem and the entire region.
The tunnel, which was excavated using controversial methods from a scientific standpoint, harnesses archaeology to politics while ignoring the nuances of Jerusalem’s ancient past….Anyone having even a passing familiarity with the Palestinian people knows that there’s no chance of arriving at any kind of agreement that will end the occupation so long as Israel continues to control East Jerusalem and the Temple Mount. Thus, by mere words and an event dripping with sweetness and smiles, the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has sentenced Israelis to a life of constant conflict, or to an apartheid state in which there are two types of residents, those with rights and those without them.” video
Over 300,000 Palestinians live in the city of Jerusalem, at least 20,000 of whom live in Silwan. These Palestinians have no citizenship rights and are not granted freedom of movement by the Israeli authorities. They are frequently displaced from their ancestral homes by Israeli settlers, particularly in Silwan neighborhood, which has been targeted by Israeli right-wing settlers for colonization.
In addition to Ambassador David Friedman, the US “Peace Envoy” Jason Greenblatt also participated in the controversial and illegal excavation, along with Sara Netanyahu, the wife of Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who recently narrowly avoided prison time by negotiating a plea agreement in which she pleaded guilty to corruption charge.
The presence of US officials at the incident marks the first time that the US, or any country, has decided to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Old City of Jerusalem. The Old City was declared an international space open to all during the declaration recognizing the state of Israel in 1948. But since 1967, Israeli forces have occupied the mainly Palestinian city and have used many measures, legal and illegal, to push out the Palestinian residents of the city.
This archaeological dig is to excavate a tunnel that Israeli state archaeologists claim was used by Jewish pilgrims thousands of years ago.
According to a statement by the Israeli non-profit Emek Shaveh, the group believes that this incident with the U.S. officials is “a further step in American support for the pro-settlement policy in Jerusalem, and particularly the touristic-settlement projects….It is inexcusable to ignore the Palestinian residents of Silwan, carrying out extensive excavations of an underground city and to use such excavations as part of an effort to tell a historical story that is exclusively Jewish in a 4,000 year-old city with a rich and diverse cultural and religious past”.
In an editorial in the leading Israeli newspaper Ha’aretz, the paper’s editors write, “The participation of American diplomats at an event sponsored by a right-wing group in East Jerusalem constitutes de facto recognition of Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem’s historic basin. If anyone had any doubts about that, Friedman made clear in an interview with the Jerusalem Post that, ‘The City of David is an essential component of the national heritage of the State of Israel.” Giving it up, even in the context of a peace agreement, he said, “would be akin to America returning the Statue of Liberty.’”
The problem with this argument, according to the editors of Ha’aretz, is that, “This recognition doesn’t just put the American administration on the extreme right of the Israeli political map – thus undercutting the claim that American can be an unbiased broker between Israel and the Palestinians – but it also ignores the complicated reality in Silwan, East Jerusalem and the entire region.
The tunnel, which was excavated using controversial methods from a scientific standpoint, harnesses archaeology to politics while ignoring the nuances of Jerusalem’s ancient past….Anyone having even a passing familiarity with the Palestinian people knows that there’s no chance of arriving at any kind of agreement that will end the occupation so long as Israel continues to control East Jerusalem and the Temple Mount. Thus, by mere words and an event dripping with sweetness and smiles, the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has sentenced Israelis to a life of constant conflict, or to an apartheid state in which there are two types of residents, those with rights and those without them.” video
Over 300,000 Palestinians live in the city of Jerusalem, at least 20,000 of whom live in Silwan. These Palestinians have no citizenship rights and are not granted freedom of movement by the Israeli authorities. They are frequently displaced from their ancestral homes by Israeli settlers, particularly in Silwan neighborhood, which has been targeted by Israeli right-wing settlers for colonization.
24 may 2019
Medical sources said at least four Palestinians were injured, including one who suffered serious wounds, in a tunnel collapse accident, in northern Gaza.
The sources said medics, and rescue volunteers rushed to the collapsed tunnel, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip, and managed to locate the four Palestinians.
The Palestinian Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip has reported that one of the wounded young men suffered a life-threatening injury.
Although some of the tunnels are used by armed resistance factions in Gaza Strip, many tunnels are used for smuggling, among several other materials, food supplies, medicine and fuel into the besieged and impoverished coastal region.
In February of this year, two Palestinians were killed, and nine were injured in a tunnel accident on the border with Egypt, in Rafah, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip.
There have been dozens of casualties, including fatalities in similar incidents, in addition to those who were killed or injured when Israel, and sometimes Egypt, bombarded the tunnels.
The sources said medics, and rescue volunteers rushed to the collapsed tunnel, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip, and managed to locate the four Palestinians.
The Palestinian Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip has reported that one of the wounded young men suffered a life-threatening injury.
Although some of the tunnels are used by armed resistance factions in Gaza Strip, many tunnels are used for smuggling, among several other materials, food supplies, medicine and fuel into the besieged and impoverished coastal region.
In February of this year, two Palestinians were killed, and nine were injured in a tunnel accident on the border with Egypt, in Rafah, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip.
There have been dozens of casualties, including fatalities in similar incidents, in addition to those who were killed or injured when Israel, and sometimes Egypt, bombarded the tunnels.
2 mar 2019
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The recent heavy rain fall has, once again, has revealed the serious damage caused by the ongoing illegal Israeli excavations in occupied Jerusalem, especially the tunnels under the Palestinian homes in Wadi Hilweh neighborhood, in Silwan town, south of the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
The Wadi Hilweh Information Center in Silwan (Silwanic) has reported that the rain fall, which lasted for several hours a few days ago, has caused serious damage and cracks in the walls and foundations of many homes, located above the areas Israel is ongoing with digging tunnels and removing sand as part of its “tunnels network,” leading to the walls of Al-Aqsa Mosque. Silwanic added that the ongoing digging and excavations have also caused the collapse of a playground and a parking lot in Wadi Hilweh, and stated that the Israeli machines keep digging around the clock, and the workers keep removing large amounts of sand resulting from the continuous work under the Palestinian homes. video video video |
It stated that similar the excavations also caused damage to lands, owned by the Greek Orthodox Christian Church, like what happened several months ago, resulting from the same excavations.
Palestinians in Wadi Hilweh stated that the winter season, especially the heavy rain, exposed the seriousness and the dangerous consequences of the ongoing digging, causing more damage to homes and property, and added that at least seventy homes in addition to walls and roads in Wadi Hilweh, have been seriously impacted.
Silwanic said that the residents headed to Israeli courts, demanding stopping the digging under their homes and property, but the excavations continued, and the damage to the Palestinian properties is becoming more serious, especially since many more have been being flooded by the rain, after their walls and floors are cracked due to the ongoing digging.
Silwan playground collapses due to Israeli excavations
Heavy rain caused a the ground of a field in the Silwan neighborhood of occupied East Jerusalem to collapse, on Saturday morning.
Jawad Siyam from the Wadi Hilweh Information Center said that residents of the neighborhood woke up to a new collapse, this time in the ground of a field (used as a playground) and the surrounding wall.
The collapse was reportedly mainly due to the continuous Israeli excavations in the area, building tunnels leading to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound from its western side.
Siyam said that Israeli settlers' excavations under and around the playground are continuous, before dirt is emptied and moved from under ground, pointed out that the Israeli authorities are digging tunnels in favor of settlement project ignoring the risks towards 5,000 residents of the neighborhood.
He added that heavy rain revealed the amount of excavations and its danger on the lives of locals.
Owner of the land on which the playground is built, Muhammad Attallah, told the center that the collapse comes as a result of 12 years of underground excavations.
In 2017, Palestinian residents of three houses in Wadi Hilweh, that Israel had ordered the evacuation of due to severe structural damage, refused to leave their homes and accused Israel of indirectly attempting to expel them from Jerusalem City.
Israel frequently allows excavations and archaeological digs that threaten the structural integrity of Palestinian homes and holy sites in the area.
Palestinians in Wadi Hilweh stated that the winter season, especially the heavy rain, exposed the seriousness and the dangerous consequences of the ongoing digging, causing more damage to homes and property, and added that at least seventy homes in addition to walls and roads in Wadi Hilweh, have been seriously impacted.
Silwanic said that the residents headed to Israeli courts, demanding stopping the digging under their homes and property, but the excavations continued, and the damage to the Palestinian properties is becoming more serious, especially since many more have been being flooded by the rain, after their walls and floors are cracked due to the ongoing digging.
Silwan playground collapses due to Israeli excavations
Heavy rain caused a the ground of a field in the Silwan neighborhood of occupied East Jerusalem to collapse, on Saturday morning.
Jawad Siyam from the Wadi Hilweh Information Center said that residents of the neighborhood woke up to a new collapse, this time in the ground of a field (used as a playground) and the surrounding wall.
The collapse was reportedly mainly due to the continuous Israeli excavations in the area, building tunnels leading to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound from its western side.
Siyam said that Israeli settlers' excavations under and around the playground are continuous, before dirt is emptied and moved from under ground, pointed out that the Israeli authorities are digging tunnels in favor of settlement project ignoring the risks towards 5,000 residents of the neighborhood.
He added that heavy rain revealed the amount of excavations and its danger on the lives of locals.
Owner of the land on which the playground is built, Muhammad Attallah, told the center that the collapse comes as a result of 12 years of underground excavations.
In 2017, Palestinian residents of three houses in Wadi Hilweh, that Israel had ordered the evacuation of due to severe structural damage, refused to leave their homes and accused Israel of indirectly attempting to expel them from Jerusalem City.
Israel frequently allows excavations and archaeological digs that threaten the structural integrity of Palestinian homes and holy sites in the area.
27 feb 2019
Muhammad Ibrahim Hamdan Qudeih, 24
A Palestinian, who is a member of the al-Qassam Brigades the military wing of the Hamas movement, died late Tuesday while inside a "resistance tunnel" in the southern besieged Gaza Strip.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza confirmed that Muhammad Ibrahim Hamdan Qudeih, 24, arrived dead to the European Hospital.
The al-Qassam Brigades declared that Qudeih is a member in Abasan al-Kabira in eastern Khan Younis, confirming that he died of a heart attack while working inside a "resistance tunnel" in Khan Younis.
Scores of Palestinians in Gaza have been killed in the vast tunnel networks that lie below the besieged enclave, which are largely used for smuggling in the south and military purposes in the north.
While the tunnels along the southern border with Egypt are used by Hamas as a source of tax revenue and inflow of weapons, they also supply highly demanded necessities for Gazans -- who have been trapped under Israeli siege for a decade -- including food, medicine, and much-needed infrastructure materials.
A Palestinian, who is a member of the al-Qassam Brigades the military wing of the Hamas movement, died late Tuesday while inside a "resistance tunnel" in the southern besieged Gaza Strip.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza confirmed that Muhammad Ibrahim Hamdan Qudeih, 24, arrived dead to the European Hospital.
The al-Qassam Brigades declared that Qudeih is a member in Abasan al-Kabira in eastern Khan Younis, confirming that he died of a heart attack while working inside a "resistance tunnel" in Khan Younis.
Scores of Palestinians in Gaza have been killed in the vast tunnel networks that lie below the besieged enclave, which are largely used for smuggling in the south and military purposes in the north.
While the tunnels along the southern border with Egypt are used by Hamas as a source of tax revenue and inflow of weapons, they also supply highly demanded necessities for Gazans -- who have been trapped under Israeli siege for a decade -- including food, medicine, and much-needed infrastructure materials.
11 feb 2019
Abdul-Hamid al-Aker, 39
The Palestinian Interior Ministry in the besieged Gaza Strip has reported, Sunday, that two Palestinians were killed, and nine others were injured, in a siege-busting tunnel on the border with Egypt, in Rafah, in the southern part of the coastal region.
Eyad al-Bozom, the media spokesperson of the Interior Ministry in Gaza, said volunteers and rescue teams located the corpse of a police officer, identified as Abdul-Hamid al-Aker, 39, in addition to Sobhi Abu Qershein, 28.
The Palestinian Interior Ministry in the besieged Gaza Strip has reported, Sunday, that two Palestinians were killed, and nine others were injured, in a siege-busting tunnel on the border with Egypt, in Rafah, in the southern part of the coastal region.
Eyad al-Bozom, the media spokesperson of the Interior Ministry in Gaza, said volunteers and rescue teams located the corpse of a police officer, identified as Abdul-Hamid al-Aker, 39, in addition to Sobhi Abu Qershein, 28.
Sobhi Abu Qershein, 28
He added that rescue teams located the corpses of the two Palestinians after hours of search and rescue operations in the border tunnel and stated that the two suffocated due to toxic gas inhalation while trying to rescue Palestinians who were trapped in the tunnel.
At least nine Palestinians, including two rescue workers, were injured in the same incident.
Although some reports speculated that the Egyptian army gassed or detonated the border tunnel, the cause of this fatal incident remains unknown, especially since dozens of Palestinians have been killed, and hundreds were injured, in tunnel accidents when the tunnels collapsed on them, or when they suffocated in the tunnels, or by accidental electrocution.
Al-Bozom did not make any statement accusing Egypt of the incident, but only reported on the death and the verified circumstances.
He added that rescue teams located the corpses of the two Palestinians after hours of search and rescue operations in the border tunnel and stated that the two suffocated due to toxic gas inhalation while trying to rescue Palestinians who were trapped in the tunnel.
At least nine Palestinians, including two rescue workers, were injured in the same incident.
Although some reports speculated that the Egyptian army gassed or detonated the border tunnel, the cause of this fatal incident remains unknown, especially since dozens of Palestinians have been killed, and hundreds were injured, in tunnel accidents when the tunnels collapsed on them, or when they suffocated in the tunnels, or by accidental electrocution.
Al-Bozom did not make any statement accusing Egypt of the incident, but only reported on the death and the verified circumstances.
18 jan 2019
Palestinian religious institutions in Occupied Jerusalem have warned of changing the historic and legal status quo at the Aqsa Mosque after the Israeli authorities started to carry out excavations at its western wall and removed stones from it.
This came in a joint statement released on Thursday by the Awqaf Council, the High Islamic Commission, the Ifta Department and the Islamic Awqaf Authority.
The Jerusalemite institutions accused the Israeli occupation state of taking advantage of the weak Arab and Islamic situation and relying on the US decisions on Jerusalem to change the historic and legal status quo in the holy city and at the Aqsa Mosque.
They affirmed that an Israeli crew of workers erected steel construction structures at the western wall of the Mosque near the Islamic Museum and carried out deep diggings that exposed the Mosque’s foundations.
The institutions said that the Israeli diggings at the wall flagrantly violated the jurisdiction of the Islamic Awqaf authority that is responsible for making any repairs to the Mosque and its walls.
They called on Jordan, in its capacity as the custodian of the Aqsa Mosque, to assume its responsibilities in this regard and immediately intervene to curb Israel’s violations at the Mosque.
This came in a joint statement released on Thursday by the Awqaf Council, the High Islamic Commission, the Ifta Department and the Islamic Awqaf Authority.
The Jerusalemite institutions accused the Israeli occupation state of taking advantage of the weak Arab and Islamic situation and relying on the US decisions on Jerusalem to change the historic and legal status quo in the holy city and at the Aqsa Mosque.
They affirmed that an Israeli crew of workers erected steel construction structures at the western wall of the Mosque near the Islamic Museum and carried out deep diggings that exposed the Mosque’s foundations.
The institutions said that the Israeli diggings at the wall flagrantly violated the jurisdiction of the Islamic Awqaf authority that is responsible for making any repairs to the Mosque and its walls.
They called on Jordan, in its capacity as the custodian of the Aqsa Mosque, to assume its responsibilities in this regard and immediately intervene to curb Israel’s violations at the Mosque.
8 jan 2019
Head of the Supreme Islamic Council in Jerusalem Sheikh Ekrima Sabri on Monday denounced the "provocative" visit by the US National Security Advisor John Bolton to the Western Wall and the illegal tunnels dug by the Israeli authorities under Jerusalem neighborhoods.
Sabri described the visit as an "aggression" on the Islamic Waqf (endowment) in Jerusalem that carries an absolute support for Israel's Judaization schemes in the holy city.
Sabri told the PIC reporter that the US-Israel deal of the century is being unveiled gradually in the region, stressing that Israel, backed by the US, is attempting to obliterate the Islamic identity of Jerusalem.
Bolton on Sunday, accompanied by Israeli tour guides, visited al-Buraq Square, in the presence of Israeli engineers and rabbis, where he was given presentations on the alleged "Temple Mount".
Bolton further toured tunnels dug by the Israeli authorities under the Old City of Jerusalem and described them as "great achievements".
Sabri described the visit as an "aggression" on the Islamic Waqf (endowment) in Jerusalem that carries an absolute support for Israel's Judaization schemes in the holy city.
Sabri told the PIC reporter that the US-Israel deal of the century is being unveiled gradually in the region, stressing that Israel, backed by the US, is attempting to obliterate the Islamic identity of Jerusalem.
Bolton on Sunday, accompanied by Israeli tour guides, visited al-Buraq Square, in the presence of Israeli engineers and rabbis, where he was given presentations on the alleged "Temple Mount".
Bolton further toured tunnels dug by the Israeli authorities under the Old City of Jerusalem and described them as "great achievements".
7 jan 2019
Jerusalem’s Palestinian Governor Adnan Gheith called on the UN to form a committee to disclose the network of secret tunnels dug by the Israeli occupation authorities under holy al-Aqsa Mosque.
Gheith warned in a Sunday statement of the serious fallouts of Israel’s underground tunnels near and around Jerusalem’s al-Aqsa Mosque, the Old City, and Silwan town.
He said the tunnels make part of Israeli attempts to alter the historical status quo in occupied Jerusalem, calling on the UN to take an urgent action in response.
Upon more than one occasion, the Wadi Hilweh Information Center in Silwan sounded the alarm over the excavations carried out by the occupation authorities near and around al-Aqsa, particularly in Wadi Hilweh neighborhood, where over 70 Palestinian homes sustained remarkable damage as a result.
The center further warned of an expanding and complex network of tunnels linking the vicinities of al-Aqsa to surrounding Israeli settlement outposts.
Gheith warned in a Sunday statement of the serious fallouts of Israel’s underground tunnels near and around Jerusalem’s al-Aqsa Mosque, the Old City, and Silwan town.
He said the tunnels make part of Israeli attempts to alter the historical status quo in occupied Jerusalem, calling on the UN to take an urgent action in response.
Upon more than one occasion, the Wadi Hilweh Information Center in Silwan sounded the alarm over the excavations carried out by the occupation authorities near and around al-Aqsa, particularly in Wadi Hilweh neighborhood, where over 70 Palestinian homes sustained remarkable damage as a result.
The center further warned of an expanding and complex network of tunnels linking the vicinities of al-Aqsa to surrounding Israeli settlement outposts.
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