The Israeli occupation army has allowed the construction of a multi-story apartment building for Jewish settlers in place of the central vegetables market known locally as “al-Hisba” in the Old City of al-Khalil.
The army radio quoted Israeli war minister Avigdor Lieberman as saying that the place where the building would be constructed belonged to Jews before the establishment of Israel.
According to a statement released by the Israeli army the settlers’ project was suspended for about 20 years for legal issues but legal adviser of the army Itai Ophir formulated a legal opinion that allows for the first time the advancement of building procedures at the site.
The Palestinian market which was shuttered following a 1994 terror attack at the Ibrahimi Mosque in which extremist Jewish settler Baruch Goldstein massacred many Palestinian worshipers is actually Islamic mortmain property endowed by Tamim bin Aws ad-Dari one of Prophet Muhammad’s companions.
