Ramallah: Palestinian Muslim and Christian religious figures warned on Wednesday that Israel is taking advantage of the Palestinian internal division, and the current regional political turmoil to erase the Islamic and Christian presence in occupied Jerusalem, and turn it into a purely Jewish city.
The religious leaders said the serious violations of law by Israel are meant to get full and undisputed Israeli control over the holy city and erase all the Muslim and Christian existence in occupied Jerusalem.
Israeli violations include land expropriation, house demolition, forcing Palestinians in occupied Jerusalem to demolish their houses in their own lands, seizing identity cards from Palestinian residents of occupied Jerusalem, arresting community leaders and deporting them out of occupied Jerusalem, restricting performance of rituals in the holy city, digging tunnels down the sacred shrines and raiding them.
Addressing a press conference in Ramallah, Yousef Eda'as, who heads the Higher Sharia Jurisdictional Council, said the Israeli objective of this unprecedented violations was not only aimed at making the Jewish presence in occupied Jerusalem historic and legal.
He stressed Israel was faking evidences of the sacred Muslim and Christian places to get them listed as the Jewish heritage sites and erase all the Muslim and Christian historic presence in the holy city.
Dr Hanna Eissa, the Undersecretary of the Palestinian Ministry of Awqaf and the Islamic and Christian Affairs, urged the various states all over the world to withdraw their diplomatic missions from occupied Jerusalem in particular and Israel in general as Israel has been acting as a country above the international law.
He stressed that the international community should move a step forward to a more effective mechanism to protect the holy city and ensure the Muslim and Christian presence in it.
Meanwhile, Dr Mustafa Al Barghouti, the Secretary General of the Palestinian National Initiative, said in an official statement that the Israel is taking advantage of the political turmoil in the region.
He said since the entire world and the international community are busy with the regional turmoil, Israel is busy creating new structural evidences on the ground.
He said that the Israeli announcement to move a military complex from Glilot to occupied Jerusalem on an area of 32,000 square metres seized form the Palestinian residents of occupied east Jerusalem, and the construction of 120 housing units and 19 synagogues in Abu Ghonaim Mountain amounts to declaration of war against the Palestinian people.
Dr Barghouti said it is time for the Palestinians to face those Israeli colonial expansion plans by strengthening the public resistance and approaching the UN institutions to impose sanctions on Israel and organise boycott campaigns against Israel.
He said it is time for the Palestinians to unite to face the unprecedented Israeli challenges, calling on the Arabs and Muslims all over the world to contribute to enhance the steadfastness of the Palestinian residents of occupied east Jerusalem.
