Israel imposes siege on Palestinians in Jerusalem under the pretext of war with Iran
Israeli authorities swiftly imposed a series of restrictions on East Jerusalem during the war, limiting entry to the Old City to its residents only.
Since the launch of its offensive against Iran on June 13, Tel Aviv has intensified its violations and tightened its restrictions on Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem, worsening their suffering and reviving fears of forced displacement.
Palestinians in East Jerusalem, including religious and legal figures, stated in press interviews that Israel exploited the war with Iran to impose measures aimed at forcing them to leave the city.
In just twelve days, as regional tensions escalated, Israeli authorities rushed to enforce new restrictions in East Jerusalem, including limiting entry to the Old City to its residents.
Israel also fully closed Al-Aqsa Mosque to worshippers, allowing only its guards and staff from the Islamic Waqf to enter. Similarly strict restrictions were applied to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which has been closed to Christian worshippers for twelve days.
Israel claims these measures are in line with “Home Front Command instructions banning gatherings,” but Palestinians affirm they are politically motivated.
Since June 13, the Israeli army has escalated its military operations in the West Bank, including Jerusalem, blocking major roads and launching offensives in the Jenin, Tulkarm, and Nour Shams refugee camps. These actions have displaced over 40,000 Palestinians, destroyed hundreds of homes and infrastructure, and caused dozens of deaths and injuries.
Sheikh Ikrima Sabri, imam of Al-Aqsa Mosque, said Israel used “the atmosphere of war—first in Gaza and now against Iran—to impose harsher restrictions on Al-Aqsa, preventing hundreds of thousands from reaching the mosque to pray.”
He condemned the measures as “unjustified,” saying they were part of “Israel’s ambitions to take over the mosque and strip the Islamic Waqf of its sole authority over it.”
He explained that the measures aim to “block worshippers’ access to the mosque,” calling the policy “concerning and unacceptable.”
Simultaneously, Israeli police imposed entry restrictions to the Old City, allowing access only to residents through police checkpoints.
Correspondents report that these restrictions have caused commercial closures in the Old City, which remain in place.
Ziad Hammouri, director of the Jerusalem Center for Social and Economic Rights, described the measures in East Jerusalem, especially the Old City, as “unprecedented.”
“We witnessed similar restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic, but they have been much harsher since the start of the war on Iran,” he said, confirming Israel has banned entry to the Old City for all non-residents and has kept Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre closed since the conflict began.
He explained that Israel’s restrictions are aimed at “wiping out the commercial sector,” as stores have been shut down for nearly two weeks.
He said the primary goal behind restricting access to the Old City—home to around 35,000 Palestinians—is to “forcibly remove them.”
He added that these restrictions coincided with “the installation of concrete barriers at neighborhood entrances like Al-Tur, and the establishment of permanent Israeli police posts at other entry points.”
He continued: “Roads connecting Jerusalem to Ramallah, including the Jaba checkpoint north of Jerusalem, have been closed, further worsening hardships.”
The left-wing Israeli NGO Ir Amim stated that East Jerusalem has witnessed “a sharp escalation in restrictions and forced closures since the beginning of the Israeli offensive on Iran, disrupting the lives of tens of thousands of Palestinians.”
In a report, the group—focused on Jerusalem affairs—noted: “Within just a few days, we documented a series of aggressive actions by Israeli security forces.”
These included “night raids in Jabal al-Mukaber, Issawiya, Al-Tur, Wadi al-Joz, Al-Walajeh, and Kafr Aqab; and the use of tear gas and stun grenades inside residential buildings.”
“As after October 7, 2023, several individuals—exclusively Palestinians—were arrested based on their activity on social media,” the report added.
“The current state of emergency highlights the systematic discrimination faced by East Jerusalem.”
Despite ongoing Iranian retaliatory strikes, the report emphasized that only about 10 percent of East Jerusalem neighborhoods have access to bomb shelters, although the population exceeds 400,000.
She added, “All the new shelters opened by the municipality during the current escalation are located in West Jerusalem, while the 400,000 residents of East Jerusalem remain largely unprotected.”
In this context, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) pointed out that tens of thousands of Palestinians in Jerusalem neighborhoods lack shelters to protect them from rocket attacks.
ACRI sent an urgent letter to the Israeli Ministry of Defense and the Jerusalem municipality, demanding the installation of fortified shelters in neighborhoods located behind the separation wall in East Jerusalem: Shuafat refugee camp, Ras Khamis, Ras Shahada, Dahiyat al-Salam, and Kafr Aqab.
In a statement, the organization noted that around 50,000 people live in these neighborhoods, most of whom hold permanent resident status in Israel, “yet no protection measures are available in these areas.”
It added, “There are no public or private shelters, no fortified rooms, and even schools, health centers, and public services operate in rented buildings that fail to meet required safety standards.”
In its letter, the association noted that while the Home Front Command has begun installing shelters in Jewish cities in central Israel, it continues to ignore Palestinian neighborhoods in Jerusalem—an act of “blatant, unlawful discrimination and a serious flaw in the criteria for distributing state-funded protective measures.”
The letter emphasized that Jerusalem neighborhoods have long suffered from “systematic” neglect by Israeli authorities, especially the Jerusalem municipality, which “has failed to plan or allocate budgets for suitable shelter construction, leaving residents without safe refuge during every escalation.”
Palestinians in East Jerusalem fear displacement plans endorsed by Israeli authorities, amid intensified Judaization efforts targeting East Jerusalem—including Al-Aqsa Mosque—and attempts to erase its Arab and Islamic identity.
Palestinians remain committed to East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state, based on international legitimacy and U.N. resolutions, which do not recognize Israel’s occupation of the city in 1967 nor its annexation in 1981.
