MKs Chaim Oron, Ilan Ghilon in Jerusalem
Photo: Noam Moscowitz
MK Oron: Gov't backs rightists in east Jerusalem
Meretz chairman says Jews in Sheikh Jarrah 'thuggishly preventing attempts to divide Jerusalem'
Around 150 left-wing activists arrived in the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah Friday afternoon for the weekly protest against Jewish residents who recently moved into the neighborhood under a court order evicting Palestinian residents.
Many members of the Meretz Party attended the protest after taking part in a tour of the Jewish areas in east Jerusalem.
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Meretz Chairman Chaim Oron compared between the municipality's policies in the neighborhood and in Beit Yehonatan, an illegal Jewish structure in the eastern city.
"You cannot claim on the one hand that the Jews have entered Sheikh Jarrah under a court order and on the other hand try to pass a bypass law in the High Court of Justice to prevent the sealing and evacuation of Beit Yehonatan," he told Ynet.
Oron was referring to an announcement made by Interior Minister Eli Yishai, who said the plans for Beit Yehonatan would be filed with the municipality's construction committee in order to secure its approval in the future.
"This is an attempt to create symmetry between Beit Yehonatan and 200 Arab homes, as if in all other areas the Palestinians receive treatment equal to that received by the settlers," Oron said.
"This is an aggressive, thug-like, and invasive attempt to prevent any endeavor to divide the city, which is a condition for the two-state solution," the Meretz chairman added. "What we are talking about here is not a realty argument but a policy led by the Israeli government."
Oron also criticized Mayor Nir Barkat, and said he "doesn't understand his office, which is to walk on tiptoes, beware of explosions, sidestep mines, and cut corners".
Earlier, during the Meretz tour of east Jerusalem, Oron said the municipality and government supported "jealous right-wing organizations" in their attempt to dispossess Palestinians.
"Jerusalem was never united, and its future will in any case never be determined by brutal hijacking and provocations," he added.
