Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem, Kobi Kahalon, reacted sharply to Jerusalem Municipality Attorney, Yossi Havilu, who said that Mayor Nir Barkat has no authority destroy illegal Arab homes in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan.

According to Kahalon, "Havilu is deceiving the public and in practice has turned a blind eye to the more than ten thousand building infractions in East Jerusalem. This is his personal failure," said the Deputy Mayor.