JERUSALEM, September 9, 2017 (WAFA) - The European Union (EU) Representative and the EU Heads of Mission in Jerusalem and Ramallah strongly condemned in a statement on Friday the Israeli eviction of a Palestinian family from its home in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah.

Israeli police forcefully removed on Tuesday the Shamasneh family from its home where it has been living since 1964 after an Israeli court ruled that the home belongs to a Jewish family since before 1948.

The eviction of the family is the first in Sheikh Jarrah in eight years as further settlement plans foreseeing large scale construction and evictions in Sheikh Jarrah are being moved forward by Israeli planning authorities.

At least 180 Palestinian households in East Jerusalem, mainly in Sheikh Jarrah, Silwan, the Old City and Beit Safafa, are facing the threat of eviction from their homes.

“The EU has repeatedly called on the Israeli authorities to reconsider these decisions,” said the statement.

“The EU missions in Jerusalem and Ramallah recall the successive Foreign Affairs Council Conclusions and statements in which the EU has repeated its strong opposition to Israel‘s settlement policy and actions taken in this context, including evictions and demolitions. Settlement activity in East Jerusalem seriously jeopardizes the possibility of Jerusalem serving as the future capital of both States,” added the statement.

“The settlement policy is illegal under international law and undermines the viability of the two-state solution and the prospect for a lasting peace,” it concluded.

M.K.