Occupied East Jerusalem’s Armenian neighborhood mobilized in opposition to Israel’s challenge to construct a luxurious lodge of their quarter within the metropolis, as their existence, like different communities, is threatened by Israel’s illegal settler initiatives.
The actual property deal, which provides an Australian-Israeli investor roughly 25% of the Old City’s Armenian quarter, has sparked anger and concern amongst its residents.
“The youth arrived in large numbers and positioned themselves in front of the bulldozers,” recalled resident Kegham Balian of the escalation final month.
“The settlers underestimated our community,” stated the Armenian service provider.
“We are waging a peaceful struggle and are not afraid.”
Ever for the reason that building started, Armenians have arrange camp, bringing tents, stoves, mattresses and even a TV to a weeks-long sit-in to protect the contested land.
Inside a tent, wood planks patch up the holes left by building gear.
On Thursday, “over 30 armed provocateurs” attacked members of the Armenian neighborhood, together with clergymen, the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem stated in a press release.
It accused the actual property developer, Danny Rothman, of being chargeable for the “massive and coordinated physical attack” shortly after the patriarchate had taken to court docket to annul the controversial land sale.
East Jerusalem and the Old City – divided into Muslim, Christian, Jewish and Armenian quarters – was seized by Israel in 1967 and annexed in a transfer not acknowledged by the worldwide neighborhood.
Land rights are a key level of rigidity in East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank, the place Israel has constructed and expanded settlements, thought-about unlawful underneath worldwide legislation.
Only round 2,000 Armenians stay within the Old City quarter after waves of immigration primarily to the United States and Europe for the reason that Nineteen Sixties.
Like Palestinians in the remainder of east Jerusalem, most Armenians don’t maintain Israeli citizenship however solely residency.
‘Without consent’
Panic erupted among the many minority neighborhood in April after it was revealed that the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem and Father Baret Yeretzian, in command of actual property affairs, struck a deal in 2021 with a Tel Aviv-based firm.
The agency that received a 99-year lease on the land is Rothman’s Xana Gardens Ltd, in keeping with Israeli lawyer and Jerusalem specialist Daniel Seidemann.
“The patriarchate reached the agreement without the knowledge and the consent of the residents of the Armenian quarter or their institutions,” Seidemann informed Agence France-Presse – (AFP), an assertion echoed by neighborhood members.
The contract included “11,500 square meters (2.8 acres) of land, including a parking lot, five residences, and the patriarchate’s seminar hall,” stated Setrag Balian, co-founder of Save the ArQ, a motion by Armenian quarter residents.
Despite the Armenian Patriarchate saying it had subsequently “withdrawn from negotiations” after discovering “problems behind this transaction,” many neighborhood members nonetheless really feel betrayed.
Yeretzian, the priest behind the contract, has been defrocked.
The newest escalation got here after Nourhan Manougian, the Armenian patriarch of Jerusalem, on Oct. 27 despatched a letter to Xana Gardens formally notifying the agency of the “cancellation of the agreement.”
Then, “bulldozers, armed settlers accompanied by dogs, and residents of the Jewish quarter” arrived within the space, stated the activist Balian, 27.
The takeover try “took advantage of the chaos of Oct. 7,” he stated.
“They managed to demolish part of the wall surrounding the parking lot.”
Rothman’s lawyer, Avi Savitzki, declined to remark when contacted by AFP.
‘We are prepared’
Campaigners say they’re making an attempt to protect the land of the Armenian neighborhood, whose presence in Jerusalem dates way back to 1,500 years.
Save the ArQ can be supported by Armenian diaspora communities with authorized help and media protection.
“Every day, families come to see us and bring us food,” stated Kegham Balian of the sit-in, the place younger and previous take turns sleeping on the web site.
They hope the land doesn’t befall the identical destiny as some Greek Orthodox Church property in Jerusalem.
Israeli settler group Ateret Cohanim, utilizing entrance firms, in 2004 acquired leasing rights on three buildings belonging to the church.
After years of authorized battles, Israel’s prime court docket ultimately allowed Ateret Cohanim to snatch the property.
This judicial setback “endangers the Christian presence and the integrity of the Christian quarter,” stated activist Hagop Djernazian.
To Balian, “we know the political stakes” within the divided holy metropolis, a focus of the Israeli-Palestinian battle.
“It will not be an easy battle, especially since we are not just fighting against a private company but also against settlers,” he stated.
But “we are ready.”
Source: www.dailysabah.com