Occupying Israeli forces detain Palestinian governor of Jerusalem, again

Occupying Israeli forces detain Palestinian governor of Jerusalem, again
Adnan Ghaith has been detained for at least the sixth time this year on Thursday.
3 min read
21 November, 2019
Adnan Ghaith is arrested by Israel on a regular basis [Getty]
Israeli forces detained the Palestinian governor of occupied east Jerusalem on Thursday, taking him from his home in the village of Silwan, a police spokesman said.

Adnan Ghaith's detention came a day after Israeli authorities closed the offices of two Palestinian Authority-affiliated organisations in Jerusalem.

The Palestinian Authority (PA) official has been arrested or detained by Israel at least six times in the past year.

Israel's police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld told AFP Ghaith's latest apprehension from his Silwan home was over "Palestinian activity in Jerusalem", without giving further details.

The Israeli occupation considers the entire city its capital, while the Palestinians see the eastern sector as the capital of their future state.

Israel bans all PA activities in Jerusalem. As a result, the PA has a minister for Jerusalem affairs and a city governor located in al-Ram, just on the other side of an Israeli wall that separates the city in the occupied West Bank.

Read also: Israel shuts down Palestine TV channel in Jerusalem following solidarity with blinded journalist

Police had previously investigated Ghaith over suspicions he was involved in the PA's arrest in October 2018 of American-Palestinian Issam Akel, who was accused of involvement in selling an occupied east Jerusalem building to Israeli buyers.

Such sales are considered "treason" among Palestinians concerned with Israeli settlers buying property in east Jerusalem in order to annex the whole city.

On Wednesday, Israeli forces closed the Jerusalem offices of Palestine TV, which is funded by the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority, as well as an office of the Palestinian ministry of education in the city.

Israel's Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan accused the TV channel of producing anti-Israel content, vowing Wednesday to "continue to pursue a firm policy against any attempt by the Palestinian Authority to violate our sovereignty in the capital".

Half-a-century of illegal occupation

Israel has occupied the West Bank illegally since 1967, and commits various abuses against Palestinian civilians, human rights groups say.

More than 600,000 Israeli Jews live in settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, in constructions considered illegal under international law.

The Oslo agreement of 1995 divided the occupied West Bank into three: Area A, Area B and Area C.

Area A is under the administrative and security control of the Palestinian Authority (PA). Area B's administration is controlled by the Palestinian Authority, with Israel controlling security. Area C is under full administrative and security control of Israel.

Along with stealing land, Israeli soldiers and settlers routinely harass Palestinians in the occupied territories in various ways.

Israeli forces and settlers routinely harass Palestinians in the occupied territories through harming and killing civilians, demolishing homes, poisoning livestock, vandalising property and other forms of violence.

Israel often forces Palestinians to demolish their own homes under the pretext of not having a building permits.

Applications for building permits often take years to be processed, giving Israeli courts a loophole to increase Palestinian home demolitions by branding structures as "illegal".

Agencies contributed to this report.

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