Occupation Forces Issue Evacuation Orders for 33 Homes Housing 220 Palestinians

SadaNews - The so-called "Department of Procedures and Execution" affiliated with the Israeli occupation authorities delivered partial eviction orders to Salah and Naeem Maragha for their homes in the Batn al-Hawa neighborhood of Silwan, south of Al-Aqsa Mosque. The eviction includes the threatened part of the two homes and the family's vehicle parking area, under the pretext of land ownership by Yemeni Jews since 1881.

The execution department has granted the family a 21-day deadline to comply with the eviction order, following the Israeli Supreme Court's rejection last week of the family's appeal, marking a new escalation in the forced displacement issue in the neighborhood.

In a related context, on January 14, the occupation authorities delivered notifications to several residents of the neighborhood from the Rajabi and Basbous families regarding the opening of files with the "Department of Procedures and Execution", preparing to implement forced eviction decisions against them, as families are usually given a deadline not exceeding 21 days.

These notifications have affected about 33 homes housing approximately 220 citizens, including the home of the Basbous family, despite the fact that their case is still pending before the Israeli Supreme Court.

This comes amid an escalating trend of settlement in the Batn al-Hawa neighborhood, where settlers seized a house belonging to the Basbous family on January 5, 2026, under tight protection from the occupation police, housing 13 family members.

Previously, on December 14, 2025, the occupation authorities forced elderly Najah Rajabi and her two sons to evacuate three houses in favor of the "Ateret Cohanim" Association, which initiated extensive restoration work in preparation for housing three settler families.

Also, on November 9, 2025, the Palestinian Umm Zahri Al-Shuweiki and her son's home, as well as the home of the Jumaa Awda family, were evacuated before settlers stormed the buildings and raised the occupation flag on them.

The claims of the "Ateret Cohanim" Association are based on allegations of ownership by Yemeni Jews since 1881 over an area estimated at about 5 dunams and 200 square meters, placing more than 84 Palestinian families with approximately 700 individuals in direct confrontation with the occupation courts.

This is based on the "Legal and Administrative Matters" Law of 1970, which allows Jews to claim property dating back to before 1948, while denying Palestinians the right to reclaim their properties.

In a related development, the Jerusalem Governorate warned of the occupation authorities' decision to complete the settlement and registration of all lands in occupied Jerusalem in the Israeli property register (Tabu) by the end of 2029, considering it the most dangerous settlement step since the city's occupation in 1967.

The governorate emphasized that the decision represents a transition from a gradual confiscation policy to a final and documented determination of land ownership in favor of the occupying state and its settlement institutions. It clarified that the new decision number (3792) comes as a continuation and direct escalation of decision number (3790) issued in 2018, which was included in what was dubbed the plan to "reduce social and economic gaps in East Jerusalem", while in essence forming an organized settlement project to impose Israeli law and sovereignty over the occupied city.