The Palestinian Foreign Ministry sent a letter to the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Fatou Bensouda, regarding Israel’s actions against the Palestinian people in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.
In the letter sent Monday, Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki called on ICC to take a clear and public stand against crimes perpetrated by Israel against the Palestinian people in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.
The ministry stated that Maliki is following the developments of Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, in full coordination with Jordan, within the context of the political and diplomatic efforts made to support the families threatened with expulsion and displacement.
The statement pointed out that the minister contacted a number of international counterparts on the issue, namely European ministers, the General Secretariat of the Arab League (AL), and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
He also directed the New York and Geneva missions to continue sending similar messages to the UN, the Security Council, the United Nations General Assembly, and the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
The Ministry condemned the decision taken by the Israeli Supreme Council yesterday over the case of Sheikh Jarrah as an unacceptable and inadmissible decision that completely contradicts international law, particularly as it gives settlers the right to their claims that were based on false grounds and forged papers.
Earlier, the Israeli court ruled that at least six Palestinian families must vacate their homes in the area by Thursday, despite having lived there for generations. It also ruled that seven other Palestinian families face eviction from their homes by August 1.
The statement stressed that such a decision constitutes a flagrant and serious violation that equates between the executioner and the victim.
This decision reveals the court's involvement in legitimizing and covering the violations and crimes of the occupation and settlers in their theft of land and its public conspiracy against the Palestinian people, specifically in the occupied city of Jerusalem, according to the Ministry.
It emphasized that documents issued by Jordan prove beyond any doubt the rights of Sheikh Jarrah's people in their homes, who face the most heinous campaign of forced displacement from their city.
The Ministry held the Israeli government fully and directly responsible for its colonial plans and projects and called on the international community to take the necessary measures to force the occupying state to comply with international law and hold it accountable for its actions.
Meanwhile, the Sheikh Jarrah Families Association, in partnership with the two left-wing Israeli organizations, Bimkom - Planners for Planning Rights and Ir Amim, petitioned the Israeli Supreme Court.
They demanded it freezes its decision to register land in Umm Haroun for Jews who claim ownership of the plot, because the legal procedure was carried out without informing the Palestinian residents who have lived on the site for decades, and without giving them the chance to protect their rights.
According to the lawsuit, the land settlement procedures in Sheikh Jarrah were carried out following eviction lawsuits that began in recent years, against the residents, on behalf of the general trustee, private parties, and settlers.
The petitioners pointed out a number of violations in the process of distributing lands in Umm Haroun, including the failure to publish land settlement procedures for the public, and the failure of the settlement official to visit the area.
They also indicated that the authorities failed to clarify the settlement process and residents' right to submit claims, and rapidly registered the settlement process, in a manner that raises suspicions about the intention to steal the land.
