Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat said Monday that he intends to follow the instructions of the State Prosecution and seal Beit Yehonatan in Shiloach after evicting its Jewish residents. However, he stressed, the same approach will be taken as regards illegal Arab housing nearby. “There will be no discrimination between Jews and Arabs,” he said.

Shiloach (Silwan) is a formerly Jewish neighborhood of eastern Jerusalem that is now largely populated by Arabs. The Prosecution has demanded that Beit Yehonatan, the one building occupied by Jews, be emptied of its residents and sealed, but is not insisting as forcefully that about 200 illegal Arab structures in the neighborhood be razed as well. 

Jerusalem Conference
Barkat spoke at the opening plenary session of the seventh annual Jerusalem Conference, which focuses on Jerusalem and features Jewish Agency head Natan Sharansky, Minister Yoel Edelstein, Senator Sam Brownback, Rabbi Aryeh Stern, Archeologist Gavriel Barkai and Nadav Shragai – a journalist and author.

Every year the Jerusalem Conference hosts key figures, opinion-molders and policy-makers from Israel and around the world – all leaders in the political, economic, academic, media, communal, security, military, and rabbinic spheres.

The Jerusalem Conference is dedicated to the promotion of Jewish heritage and values and to Israel’s future as a viable, modern, democratic and Jewish state.

The Seventh Jerusalem Conference is co-sponsored by Arutz Sheva, Makor Rishon and the Jerusalem Post.

Live video coverage resumes Tuesday at 9:30 AM.