By Zuheir Rajabi, head of the BATN AL HAWA NEIGHBOURHOOD COMMITTEE
For decades Israel has been confiscating Palestinian land and demolishing Palestinian homes often to make way for the construction and expansion of illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Since October 2023 there has been a sharp rise in the forced displacement of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and in the occupied Gaza Strip, where Israel has forcibly displaced most of the population and recently threatened to permanently seize territory and subject the population to forcible transfer or deportation.
In January 2025, an Israeli court ordered the eviction of 27 families from their homes in Batn Al-Hawa, in the village of Silwan, in occupied East Jerusalem, after a decade-long case filed by the Israeli settler organization Ateret Cohanim who claim the land is rightfully owned by a Jewish trust.
15 May is Nakba Day, which commemorates when hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were expelled or forced to flee their homes in what became Israel in 1948. They continue to be denied the right to return to this day.
This Nakba Day Zuheir Rajabi, whose family is among those who have been ordered to evacuate Batn Al-Hawa within six months, describes his experience as a Palestinian facing displacement in Jerusalem.
My little piece of heaven
My house in Batn Al-Hawa, though modest and old, holds a dear place in my heart. It is the house I was born and grew up in. My grandmother bought this house in 1966 after she moved with her sons, my father and uncles, from Al-Sharaf neighbourhood in the Old City, known today as the Jewish Quarter. In this house, my father got married and I was born. I took my first steps in it, and so did my kids after me. Generation after generation, my family expanded the house. We worked on it with our hands, with our sweat. We feel blessed also because from our balcony, we can see the Old City and Al-Aqsa Mosque, which is just a short walk away.
Since 2015, I have been fighting to keep my home, which is one of 87 homes that the Israeli settler organization Ateret Cohanim wants to seize in order to establish yet another Jewish Israeli settlement in occupied East Jerusalem.
Almost 80% of the people in these homes are Nakba refugees, displaced by Israel in 1948 from the village of A-Dawaymeh near Lydd, some from Deir Yassin village, and Al-Baq’ah and Al-Qatamon neighbourhoods of Jerusalem. The entire population of A-Dawaymeh was forced out in 1948 by the Israeli army during the war and no longer exists today. All Palestinian residents of Deir Yassin, Al-Baq’ah and Al-Qatamon were displaced, and the neighbourhoods, part of West Jerusalem, were renamed with Hebrew names.
Today, these refugees feel they are facing a new Nakba, as they are being expelled again from their homes and lands, while Israeli law does not grant them the right that Jewish residents have to demand back any property that belonged to them before 1948.
“Take the money… Go live an easy life!”
Settler organizations, often enjoying big donations from global supporters, take advantage of the fact that life in Jerusalem is hard for Palestinians. Their aim is to support the Israeli authorities’ official plans to maintain a demographic ratio of 70% Jewish and 30% Palestinian among the residents of Jerusalem. Life under occupation means that the Israeli forces and settlers are often in our communities, disturbing our peace and threatening our security. Jerusalem is also an expensive city, and with very little development of housing opportunities for them by the municipality, Palestinians find it hard to keep up with the ever-rising real estate prices.
ِBefore they filed the court case, representatives of Ateret Cohanim employed a common tactic used by settler organizations in Jerusalem. They offered my family a substantial amount of money for our modest home, presenting us with an open cheque and proposing amounts ranging from one to 30 million shekels. [$270,000 – $8 million] “Take the money and leave. Go live an easy life,” they said, hoping that we’d be tempted with money to escape the hardship of living in Silwan. They also tried to convince us to move to alternative housing, even whole buildings, in other parts of Jerusalem, but we wanted to fight for the home where we made precious memories.
The court case has been ongoing for nearly a decade now, draining us mentally and financially. The court’s decision in January was a blow to our neighbourhood. We now have to fundraise to appeal against the eviction order.
Israeli authorities exert various forms of pressure on the residents of Batn Al-Hawa, including excessive force and arrests. Afew months ago, the Israeli border police came to me and demanded that I help them locate a resident of the neighbourhood who they claimed insulted them and fled. When I explained that I had no way of helping them, they stormed into my house, damaged my property and arrested me. They handcuffed me, beat me up, and broke three ribs. I could hardly move for about three months. They also assaulted my wife, son and cousin, and even our cat. They accused me of obstructing police work and arrested me. After my release the next day, I consulted many lawyers about filing a complaint against the officers for their violence, but they all advised me that it would be futile – a waste of my time and money.
In other incidents, municipal officials fined me for having surveillance cameras on my roof, or because I had a garbage bin outside of my house. These absurd fines are not random; they are part of a systematic effort to increase pressure on us so we give up and leave. They target me as the head of the neighbourhood committee because they hope that if they break my spirit, it will influence everyone else.
Seeking a Jewish majority in Jerusalem through the displacement of Palestinians
Israeli authorities, including the government, Jerusalem municipality, the Jewish National Fund, and the Nature and Parks Authority, collaborate closely with settler organizations like Ateret Cohanim and Elad to regularly displace Palestinians from the city. Silwan is especially targeted due to its strategic location just south of the Old City and Al-Aqsa MosqueIn. In the Silwan neighbourhoods of Wadi Hilweh, Al-Bustan wadi Rababah and Batn Al-Hawa, intensive displacement has been happening through land grabs, home demolitions, evictions and settlement expansion, all in a coordinated effort between Israeli authorities and settler organizations.
The situation in the city of Jerusalem, like elsewhere in Palestine, has become more challenging since the war on Gaza began in October 2023. It has become increasingly difficult to organize protests or even solidarity visits in our neighbourhood, due to the police crackdowns and growing settler harassment.
However, this is my home, and I will never leave. This is my conviction. We lead a difficult life here, but despite the hardships, when I stand on my balcony and see Al-Aqsa Mosque in front of my eyes, that is enough. My neighbours also share this conviction. We are firmly rooted in this place, our lives, our childhood, our dreams, and we will never give up fighting for our homes.
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