On Thursday, clashes between Israeli settlers and Palestinians erupted in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood in East Jerusalem over a long-standing legal battle between both sides over the ownership of the land. Palestinians face the possibility of being removed from their homes as they await a decision by Israel’s Supreme Court regarding the highly contentious issue.
The Supreme Court, while postponing the decision to next week, asked the affected Palestinian families to reach a settlement with the Israelis. However, it was reported that the Palestinians have rejected any sort of deal with the settlers. This was confirmed on Thursday by lawyers representing the Palestinians, who said that they could not reach a settlement with the Israeli side.
Facing the risk of eviction, Palestinians living in Sheikh Jarrah have frequently resorted to protests, leading to confrontations with Israeli settlers and the police. What began as verbal altercations over the last week quickly turned into violent physical confrontations. Palestinians were further angered when right-wing Kahanist lawmaker Ben-Gvir set up an office near the neighbourhood on Thursday as the community was observing Iftar rituals. While videos showing both sides engaging in violent confrontations emerged, there were no reports of serious injuries. Israeli police arrested 15 people during the clashes, all of whom were Palestinians.
Tensions further escalated when a Palestinian gunman killed an Israeli teen in a drive-by shooting in West Bank’s Nablus district on Wednesday. On the same day, Israeli forces shot and killed a 16-year-old Palestinian in Nablus. The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) said that the incident occurred when the soldiers “acted to stop the suspects by opening fire on them.” The IDF added that Molotov cocktails were hurled at them “during a routine operation south of Nablus.”
Israel is also on alert for a possible security situation emerging in Gaza following threats made by Hamas. The Gazan militant group has warned the Jewish state of a strong reaction over the possible eviction of Palestinians living in Sheikh Jarrah. On Wednesday, leader of Hamas’s military wing (Iz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades), Mohammed Deif said, “This is our final warning; if the aggression against our people in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood does not stop immediately, we will not stand idly by and the occupation will pay a heavy price.”
In light of this situation, major European powers urged Israel to take the necessary steps to end the conflict. France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom released a statement on Thursday which said that the eviction of Palestinians from Sheikh Jarrah “undermines efforts to rebuild trust between the parties.” The text also urged Israel to “reverse its decision to advance the construction of 540 settlement units” near East Jerusalem. “Settlements are illegal under international law, and threaten prospects for a peaceful resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” it read. In a similar vein, the European Union (EU), in a separate statement, called the situation in East Jerusalem “alarming” and said that unilateral actions by Israel will “only fuel tensions on the ground.”
Israel’s actions were also criticised by the United Nations (UN). UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Tor Wennesland expressed concern “over the surge in tensions and violence in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem.” He urged Israeli forces to show maximum restraint and use force only when unavoidable. “I call on political, religious and community leaders on all sides to stand firmly against violence, incitement and inflammatory rhetoric. If unaddressed, the situation could spiral out of control,” Wennesland added.
Since the end of April, tensions have spiked between Israelis and Palestinians. As both sides clashed in East Jerusalem near the Damascus Gate last month over Israeli security restrictions, Hamas launched about 40 rockets into Israel in retaliation. The current conflict over the status of Sheikh Jarrah has threatened to further destabilise the region. In this regard, a Palestinian protestor told the Times of Israel that if Palestinians are expelled from the neighbourhood, “Jerusalem will explode.”