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Israel to Resume Demolishing Palestinian Houses in East Jerusalem
Israel's Jerusalem Municipality plans to demolish two Palestinian houses built without permits in East Jerusalem, the first such move since Israeli- Palestinian clashes erupted last September, Israel Radio reported on Tuesday.
The municipality has in recent months refrained from carrying out demolition orders against a number of Palestinian houses in East Jerusalem for fear of a violent response, the radio said.
In the coming two weeks, however, the municipality plans to destroy five houses in Beit Hanina neighborhood of East Jerusalem.
Israeli Arab Knesset (Parliament) member Ahmad Tibi charged Tuesday that the demolitions, which come only weeks before the February 6 prime ministerial election, were politically motivated.
"There are people who want to show a strong hand against the Palestinians in order to win the election," he told Army Radio.
Israel grabbed East Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East War and declared the whole city as its "eternal and undivided capital" in 1980 in a move not recognized by the international community.
The status of Jerusalem is one of the thorniest issues in the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. The Palestinians have been striving for their own independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital while the right-wing Israelis are fighting against any attempt to divide the holy city.
Under proposals made by outgoing US President Bill Clinton week ago, Israel is to transfer parts of East Jerusalem to Palestinian control.
With the Israeli prime ministerial election around the corner, it is still uncertain whether the Israelis and Palestinians can manage to reach any sort of agreement to boost caretaker Prime Minister Ehud Barak's chances of being reelected.
Israeli and Palestinian negotiation teams are to resume talks on Tuesday after one day's freeze on the peace efforts following the murder of an Israeli settler in Gaza Strip on Sunday.
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