Who are the families Ryan Olander was trying to help?

We are publishing this month a response from the Israeli Consulate in Chicago to the article “Freedom for Ryan Olander, justice for Sheikh Jarrah” that we published last month in these pages. We believe strongly that a resolution to the Palestine/Israeli struggle is key to peace in the Middle East. We hope that our dialog contributes to that solution.

BY RENIE E. SCHREIBER, PRESS OFFICER, CONSULATE GENERAL OF ISRAEL TO THE MIDWEST

Please allow me to present some background, which may clarify the present situation:

About one kilometer north of the Damascus Gate of the Old City of Jerusalem is an ancient burial cave traditionally identified as the tomb of Simon the Just (in Hebrew Shimon Hatzadik). This is a traditional Jewish holy site. In 1876, the cave and the land adjoining the tomb were purchased by the Sefardic Jewish community. At that time, the city was just beginning to expand beyond the walls of the Old City and the land around the tomb was largely empty. The Sefardic Community Committee built several houses on this land which, beginning in 1891, developed into a small neighborhood called Nahalat Shimon. Later, a larger Muslim neighborhood called Sheikh Jarrah grew up in the surrounding area.
During Israel’s War of Independence, in 1948, the area changed hands several times, but was eventually conquered by the Jordanian army and remained under Jordanian control after the Armistice was signed. The Jewish inhabitants of Nahalat Shimon, like those of the Jewish Quarter of the Old City or other Jewish areas conquered by the Jordanians, were expelled and not permitted to return.
In the 1950s, the Jordanian authorities settled 28 Palestinian Arab families in the houses of the old Nahalat Shimon neighborhood.

In 1967, as a result of the Six Day War, Jerusalem was reunited under Israeli sovereignty. Soon after, the Sefardic Community Committee asked for the return of their properties, including the Nahalat Shimon neighborhood, which had been confiscated by the Jordanians. The court found in favor of the Sefardic Community Claim, but took into account the presence of the Palestinian Arab families on the property, who were granted the status of “protected tenants.” (This is somewhat similar to rent control in some parts of the United States: The tenants cannot be evicted as long as they pay a legally limited annual rental.)

Most of the Palestinian families rejected this decision and refused to pay the rent. A long series of court cases began, with each side suing for complete ownership of the properties. There are several cases involved, each slightly different, but all fitting into this framework. These cases have been working their way through the courts for many years and are only now beginning to come to their final conclusions as the appeals to higher courts are being decided. Among the first cases to come to final decisions have been those of the al-Ghawi and Hannoun families, to which your letter referred as well as the al-Kurd family, a case that also received extensive publicity. In all three cases the courts found in favor of the Sefardic Community Committee and, in light of the refusal of the tenants to pay rent, ordered their eviction.

Permit me to emphasize several points:
These are all civil cases between a landlord and tenants, tried in civil courts. The Government of Israel or the Municipality of Jerusalem were not involved.
There are several more similar cases that should be coming to their conclusion soon.
Every property dispute can be ugly and angry. This one was complicated even more than usual by its politicization within the context of the Israel-Arab dispute. The Palestinian families could have settled for protected tenant status but refused to do so because they felt this would legitimize the Israeli claims to a united Jerusalem. In addition, the Palestinian national institutions and several foreign consultants encouraged this adamant refusal to compromise even though the Sefardic Community Committee was clearly the original owner of the property.

The politicization has affected both sides and the Sefardic Community Committee has turned management of the property over to a Jewish group, whose goal is to increase the Jewish presence in the neighborhoods of eastern Jerusalem.

So far, the case has taken over 25 years. While the eviction of families cannot ever be taken lightly and is never pleasant, in this case there can be no doubt that both sides have had more than ample opportunity to present their cases in court and the decision to evict is based on the rules of law.