Palestinian lawyer confident of stopping Jerusalem evictions

Palestinian lawyer confident of stopping Jerusalem evictions

AMMAN: Lawyers and activists trying to prevent the eviction of some 87 Palestinian residents from their homes in the Sheikh Jarrah district of Jerusalem appeared to be upbeat this week. Palestinian lawyer Hosni Abu Hussein told Arab News that Israeli courts have given the residents living in 12 housing units in the East Jerusalem neighborhood until Thursday to come up with an agreement with Nahlat Shamon, a US-registered settler organization. "We sat for hours with the judge and each of us gave suggestions to settle the case," Hussein said. "Our suggestion is that we deposit the rental money for the units to a secure fund at the court until the real owner of the land — the housing units were built in the 1950s — is determined." Hussein said this suggestion was made because non-payment of rent is the fastest way to evict residents, according to rental laws. Jordan was in control of Jerusalem when the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) built the housing units on the vacant land and started to charge Palestinians rent. Settler organizations, which also claim to be the owners of the land, are now demanding rent payment. According to the rent protection law in