The Jerusalem Governorate called for urgent international intervention after Israeli authorities approved a plan to seize Palestinian properties in the Bab al-Silsila area near the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the governorate described the move as a “dangerous colonial escalation” aimed at displacing Palestinian residents and tightening Israeli control over areas surrounding Al-Aqsa Mosque in the occupied Old City of Jerusalem.
According to the statement, the decision implements an earlier recommendation approved by a former Israeli minister responsible for Jerusalem affairs and heritage, reactivating a confiscation order dating back to 1968 under the stated pretext of enhancing Jewish control and security in the area.
The governorate said the plan targets between 15 and 20 historic Palestinian properties along the Bab al-Silsila route belonging to Jerusalemite families.
It added that the targeted sites include historic buildings and Islamic endowments dating to the Ayyubid, Mamluk and Ottoman periods.
The governorate stressed that Bab al-Silsila is one of the main historic routes leading to Al-Aqsa Mosque and argued that the move forms part of a broader Israeli policy aimed at altering the demographic and historical character of the area surrounding the mosque compound.
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