United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last week incorrectly stated that the demolitions of houses in eastern Jerusalem violate the Roadmap. In fact, the American plan does not mention the subject of demolitions and specifically states that the future of the capital must be negotiated by the Palestinian Authority and Israel.
During her visit to Jerusalem and Ramallah, a reporter asked the new Secretary of State about 88 approved demolitions and another 55 slated to be razed for being built illegally. The reporter from the Washington Post labeled the orders “unilateral actions.”
Secretary Clinton picked up the cue and responded, "This kind of activity is unhelpful and not in keeping with the obligations entered into under the roadmap…. The new Israeli Government should abide by the Roadmap obligations and the two-state solution and to end all activities related to settlement and activities and demolition of homes. Otherwise, we cannot consider – they cannot consider themselves as partners in the peace process.”
However, a look at the Roadmap details show the she was not on the same page or even reading the same map. The document, as stated by the State Department, declares under the title “Unresolved Issues in the Palestine Problem, Jerusalem: The United States has maintained a policy since 1967 that the future of the city must be negotiated and cannot be decided unilaterally, and that the city should not be divided as it was between 1948 and 1967.
Following statements by Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat criticizing Secretary Clinton for being ill-informed concerning the nature of the demolitions, U.S. officials said that his remarks were “an insult” to Clinton. The U.S. was so upset that the office of outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert tried to soothe ruffled feathers, saying that Mayor Barkat’s remarks were not directed to Secretary Clinton but rather to false claims by the Palestinian Authority. "We regret any implication that Secretary of State Clinton was in any way being criticized," the government stated.
Mayor Barkat did not let the matter rest and issued another rejection of the accusations, this time aimed “at those who
continue
to
exploit
the
recent
visit
of
Secretary
Clinton
to
the
region
and
the
new
U.S.
administration
[by]
spreading
false
claims
regarding
Palestinians
allegedly
living
in
eastern
Jerusalem.
Mayor
Barkat
repeated his previous explanation that the demolitions are legal and that the city issues similar orders without prejudice.
"Since
January
1, 2009, 28
illegal
buildings
have
been
demolished
–
11
in
western
Jerusalem and 17
in
eastern [Jerusalem],” his office said in a statement.
“In
the
heart
of
the
current
disinformation
is
Emek
Hamelech, an
area
that
has
important
historical
and
archaeological
meaning
and
is
used
solely
as
recreational
space
for
the
benefit
of
the
residents
of
Silwan,
and
is
a
national
garden. There
are
57
buildings
in
different
phases
of
legal
proceedings
from
the
area
of
Emek
HaMelech.
The
judicial
decision
to
demolish
a building
has
only
been
issued
to
one
complete
structure
and
two new
buildings currently
under
construction."
The demolition in Jabel Mukaber, and not in Silwan as reported by several sources, was carried out after
the
Supreme
Court
rejected
an
appeal against
the order. The
building
was
constructed
without
permits
on
open and
public
property, according to the statement.
Concerning the demolitions in Shuafat, Mayor Barkat’s office said, “Five
administrative
warning
were
issued
to
five unpopulated, illegal buildings
in
different
stages
of
construction.”