The year 1967 was not the actual beginning of the occupation of Jerusalem; the occupation began after the fall of the Ottoman Caliphate and the beginning of the British Mandate in Palestine in 1922. The British mandate strengthened the presence of Jewish settlers who began controlling the city and gradually started controlling the rest of Palestine.
After Britain announced the end of its mandate on Palestine in 1948 the Jewish gangs exploited the state of political and military vacuum and announced the establishment of the ‘State of Israel’ in Palestine which was a declaration of war between Arabs and Jews.
Since 1967 Israel has made numerous attempts to Judaize the Palestinian areas it occupied including through media highlight of the importance of the ‘Hebrew’ sites in the city of Jerusalem the confiscation of lands and the establishment of settler outposts the deportation of native citizens from their homes preventing them from construction and imposing high fines on them.
A disaster area
On the anniversary of the commemoration of the occupation of Jerusalem it was necessary to highlight the needs of the city at the present time which was described by Jamal Amr an expert on Jerusalem’s affairs as ‘a disaster area’. He added: “We must realize that what is going on in the city is a rare historical catastrophe.”
Amr pointed to the PIC reporter that this realization makes us able to diagnose the disease and prescribe the necessary medication for it.
The Jerusalem affairs expert noted that Jerusalem is the parameter of safety of the Muslim nation which lives now in weakness and humiliation.
Professor of international law at the University of Bethlehem Abdullah Abu Eid points out that the general rules of international law confirm that not only Jerusalem is occupied but also all of Palestine and what applies to Jerusalem applies to all Palestinian lands.
Abu Eid noted to the PIC reporter that the occupation violates all international norms and laws which stipulate that the occupation should not benefit economically or politically from the occupied territory.
He said that “Israel has a de facto though illegal control over the city of Jerusalem and it refuses to abide by any of the international laws.”
What Jerusalem needs
The expert in the Jerusalem affairs Abu Amr summarizes the needs of the city by first re-sanctifying it in the hearts of the people of the Muslim nation and not to include it in the final status negotiations.
He stressed the need to put Jerusalem at the top of the agenda of our political and legal demands which requires a giant strategic plan to mobilize national efforts to restore Jerusalem and not to recognize its occupation.
The researcher said: “No one should ignore Jerusalem and be involved in normalization and reconciliation with the occupation” expressing disappointment at the billions of dollars paid by the Arabs to America for arms deals.
He added: “They should have poured these billions in Jerusalem which would have improved the conditions of all Arabs.”
Missing leadership
Professor of international law Abu Eid pointed out that Jerusalem and the Palestinian cause lack the active leadership which gathers people around it and have the will to bring about change.
“Unfortunately there is no future plan for the city of Jerusalem while the occupation plans for the future of Jerusalem until 2050” he said calling for a clear strategy for the liberation of Jerusalem.
