22/4/2026 – Union for Justice Foundation
The Union for Justice Foundation stated that Israeli occupation authorities have, since the beginning of the current year, displaced dozens of Palestinian families from the town of Silwan, located near Al-Aqsa Mosque in the city of Jerusalem, after demolishing their homes and seizing them.
The foundation reported that this Palestinian town, which covers an area of approximately 5,640 dunams and is inhabited by more than 60,000 Jerusalemites, has remained under continuous Israeli targeting since its occupation in 1967 through policies of Judaization and displacement of its residents, due to its strategic location and its proximity to Al-Aqsa Mosque, as it lies only 300 meters south of it.
The Union for Justice indicated that the town of Silwan, considered the original core from which the city of Jerusalem emerged, consists of several neighborhoods, most notably: Wadi Hilweh, Wadi al-Rababa, Wadi Qaddum, Al-Bustan neighborhood, Batn al-Hawa, Ein al-Luza, Ras al-Amud, and Al-Thuri. Hundreds of homes in these neighborhoods have been demolished over the past decades.
Half of Silwan’s neighborhoods are under threat of complete demolition and removal, based on false Israeli claims alleging that the town is built on the ruins of the “City of King David.” As a result, the residents of Silwan face the risk of forced displacement due to the loss of their homes and the confiscation of their lands.
According to the Union for Justice Foundation, Israeli occupation authorities employ several methods to confiscate Palestinian land and property in Silwan, most notably: the Absentees’ Property Law, claims by Jews of ownership of land in East Jerusalem prior to 1948, or expropriation for public needs, such as constructing infrastructure for settlements, parks, and other purposes.
Jewish associations
The town constitutes a primary target for settlement organizations, particularly the associations “Elad” and “Ateret Cohanim,” which are supported by the Israeli government and receive donations amounting to millions of dollars from Israeli companies and Jewish supporters around the world. These two associations have succeeded in settling approximately 3,000 Jews in the area, which had previously been completely devoid of them.
Two settlements have been established on Silwan land: the first, “Ma’ale HaZeitim,” in 1998, and the second, “Ma’alot David,” in 2009. In addition, settlers have taken control of numerous settlement enclaves in the Wadi Hilweh neighborhood, as well as settlement outposts numbering approximately 78.
United Nations data issued in March 2024 indicates that around 116 Palestinian homes are under imminent threat of demolition, and that 1,550 Palestinians in Al-Bustan neighborhood alone are at risk of forced displacement. Israeli authorities are threatening to demolish the neighborhood and establish the so-called “Holy Basin” and biblical parks in its place.
According to other reports issued by the Wadi Hilweh Information Center, the number of residential units that have been seized or have received eviction orders in Batn al-Hawa neighborhood alone (one of Silwan’s neighborhoods) has exceeded 80 apartments belonging to dozens of Palestinian families, as part of legal claims based on alleged ownership dating back to before 1948.
The Union for Justice affirms that the demolition and seizure of Jerusalemite homes in Silwan constitute an established Israeli method aimed at altering the demographic balance of the town and changing its Arab and Islamic character, within a systematic policy intended to strengthen settlement presence around Al-Aqsa Mosque.
According to monitoring by the Union for Justice Foundation, Israeli occupation authorities have directly carried out demolition operations or forced Palestinian families residing in Silwan to demolish their homes themselves on 17 occasions since the beginning of 2026.
Israeli authorities force residents of occupied Jerusalem to demolish their homes themselves under the pretext of lacking permits. Those who refuse have their homes demolished by Israeli bulldozers, and heavy fines are imposed on the owner in addition to the costs of forced demolition.
On January 26, occupation authorities forced citizen Jamal Ghaith to demolish his home in Wadi Yasul neighborhood in Silwan. On January 31 of the same month, they forced Mohammad Atiya al-Razem to demolish his home in Wadi Qaddum neighborhood in Silwan, noting that the house had existed for 26 years and measured approximately 160 square meters.
On February 6, occupation authorities forced citizen Jalal al-Tawil to demolish a room measuring 30 square meters in Silwan, which was part of a house that had existed for more than 40 years. On March 30, Israeli bulldozers demolished, without prior notice, four homes in Silwan belonging to the Awad, Abu Shafea, and al-Ruwaidi families.
Escalation of demolitions since early April
Since the beginning of April, Israeli occupation authorities have escalated demolition operations in Silwan in an unprecedented manner, forcing or demolishing the homes of 13 Jerusalemite families, resulting in the displacement of more than 75 Palestinians, most of them women and children.
On April 5, occupation authorities forced Ali Younes Abu Rmeileh, from Al-Thuri neighborhood in Silwan, to demolish his 60-square-meter home, which housed four family members.
The following day, Khalil Abd Badran from Silwan was forced to demolish his home, measuring approximately 100 square meters, which housed four family members.
On April 7, occupation authorities forced brothers Nader and Hatem Baydoun to demolish their homes themselves in Al-Bustan neighborhood in Silwan. The two homes measured approximately 88 square meters and housed 10 individuals.
On April 9, occupation authorities forced Ahmad Mohammad Shahda Qweidar to demolish his home in Al-Bustan neighborhood in Silwan. The house measured approximately 60 square meters and was inhabited by the husband, his wife, and their three children.
On April 11, occupation authorities forced Wael Tahan and his brothers to demolish their homes themselves in Ras al-Amud neighborhood in Silwan. The first building consisted of two floors, each measuring 200 square meters, housing 12 individuals. A second similar building also consisted of two floors, each measuring 200 square meters, and housed 8 individuals, in addition to a third separate house measuring 120 square meters, housing 5 individuals.
The following day, the occupation authorities forced the brothers Mahmoud and Mohammad Khalaf Odeh to demolish their homes in the Al-Bustan neighborhood in the town of Silwan. The first measured 65 square meters and housed his wife and three of his children (5), while the second measured 70 square meters and was inhabited by him, his wife, and five children (7).
On April 12 of the previous month, occupation authorities forced citizen Mahmoud al-Tawil to demolish his home himself in Silwan. The house measured 120 square meters and housed a couple and their four children (6).
On April 15, occupation authorities demolished the home of Jerusalemite Saleh Dweik in Al-Bustan neighborhood in Silwan. The house measured 110 square meters and housed a family of four.
The following day, occupation authorities forced Omar Abdel Majid Abu Rajab to demolish his 45-square-meter home in Silwan. On April 18, occupation authorities forced Wael Hashem Jalajel to demolish his home himself in Al-Bustan neighborhood in Silwan. The house measured 140 square meters and consisted of two apartments housing a family of eight.
At the end of last year, the Israeli Supreme Court issued a ruling upholding the decision of the District Court regarding the eviction of 13 apartments housing more than 100 Jerusalemite residents in Batn al-Hawa neighborhood in Silwan in favor of the colonial settler organization “Ateret Cohanim.”
On March 25, Israeli occupation authorities removed residents of 11 homes in Silwan, housing approximately 65 residents, in order to take control of them for the benefit of settlement associations.
The Union for Justice Foundation stresses that the Israeli authorities’ alteration of the demographic composition of Jerusalem in favor of Israelis, along with the displacement of Palestinians and their expulsion from their homes following demolition or seizure, constitutes a clear violation of international law.
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