JERUSALEM, December 14, 2025 (WAFA) – Three Jerusalemite families were forced on Sunday to vacate their homes in the Batn al-Hawa neighborhood, located in Silwan in East Jerusalem, under pressure and decisions issued by the Israeli occupation authorities in favor of the Ateret Cohanim colonist organization.
In a statement, the Jerusalem Governorate said the forced eviction included Jerusalemite resident Um Nasser al-Rajbi and her children. It said her son, Nasser al-Rajbi, was forced to evict his home with his family, and an ambulance crew had to transfer his son Awad, 29, who is in a complete coma, as well as his daughter, 24, who has a disability. The Governorate added that the forced eviction also included her second son, Aed al-Rajbi, and his family.
The Governorate said the move is part of an ongoing policy of forced displacement targeting the neighborhood’s residents. Since June 2024, Israeli occupation forces have carried out forced evictions affecting 13 homes in Batn al-Hawa. It added that the building of Kaed al-Rajbi also faces real risks after the occupation authorities gave families until January 5, 2026, as a final deadline to implement the eviction decisions, according to Zuhair al-Rajbi, an official from the Batn al-Hawa neighborhood committee.
Al-Rajbi said the Israeli Supreme Court is currently examining five legal cases, pending decisions on appeals filed by residents. He added that the cases involve 26 homes housing around 250 people, amid claims advanced by the occupation authorities and colonization associations to justify the eviction decisions, heightening fears of a broader expansion of forced displacement in the neighborhood.
The Ateret Cohanim organization bases its claims on alleged Jewish ownership of about five dunums and 200 square meters of land in Batn al-Hawa dating back to 1881. The claims, first filed in 2015, have drawn dozens of Palestinian families into protracted legal battles before Israeli courts.
Batn al-Hawa, located about 400 meters from Al-Aqsa Mosque and home to around 10,000 Jerusalemites, is one of the most targeted neighborhoods in Silwan, as part of efforts to bolster colonization control around Al-Aqsa Mosque and link colonization outposts in Silwan.
The statement said residents have no option to defend their right to their homes and prove ownership except by turning to Israeli courts, which are sham courts subordinate to the occupation system.
T.R.
