Israeli colonisation of Jerusalem focus of new infographic series

Six Palestinian civil society organisations, CAC- Al-Quds University, JLAC, the Society of St. Yves, Al-Haq, BADIL and al-Shabaka, have collaborated with Visualising Palestine to create a series of visuals on the situation in Israeli-occupied East Jerusalem.

The graphics “aim at raising awareness of Israel’s apartheid policies in the city, its effects on the Palestinian population, and the gross violations of international humanitarian and human rights law that arise.”

The first infographic, ‘Living under policies of colonization in Jerusalem’, provides “an overview of the discriminatory Israeli policies that target Palestinians in East Jerusalem, as well as others that seek to unlawfully increase the Israeli settler population in the city.”

Such measures include the so-called ‘centre of life’ policy (by which Palestinians residency status can be revoked) and a discriminatory building permit regime. These policies serve to create “unbearable living conditions for the Palestinian population and is engaging in their silent forcible transfer.”

Meanwhile, punitive measures specifically targeting the Palestinian population of East Jerusalem include “expropriating land and property, denying building permits, and demolishing Palestinian homes in a systematic and discriminatory manner.”

Israel is also “severely restricting the natural development of Palestinian neighbourhoods by instead facilitating the expansion of Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem” and “severely restricting family (re)unification and child registration of East Jerusalem Palestinians.”

East Jerusalem is considered occupied territory. Under international law, the de facto annexation by the Israeli government is illegal. Throughout its occupation, Israel has enacted discriminatory legal and political policies to diminish the presence of the Palestinian population in East Jerusalem.

Palestinians in East Jerusalem and other parts of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip are physically isolated from each other, with Israel seeking to “consolidate its control over Jerusalem and attempts to completely sever it from the rest of the [Occupied Palestinian Territory].”