Israeli Army occupies roof in Silwan

[ 10/02/2011 – 02:49 PM ]

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)– The Israeli Army has occupied the roof of a Palestinian building in East Jerusalem’s Silwan district. The military order is effective until August 5, 2011, but the residents have been given 14 days to appeal. They are prohibited from ascending to the building’s roof. The army has taken the roof as a military posts since several months after a visit by the Israeli Minister of Interior to Silwan with intent to enhance the security of Jewish settlers, leading to a recent rise in clashes. Locals have complained of harassment by the soldiers. The structure contains the Batn Al-Hawa neighborhood’s main mosque and the houses of seven Palestinian families. Meanwhile in Sheikh Jarrah, Israeli police threatened locals it would take extreme punitive measures over ongoing confrontations sparked by provocations by Jewish settlers in the area. Police said they would arrest or exile anyone who confronts Jewish settlers who reside in Palestinian homes in the East Jerusalem district. The settlers had seized the homes more than a year back and turned them into settlement outposts from where Palestinians are frequently harassed.

Israeli Army occupies roof in Silwan.