Creating fake graves is a new way for the occupation to seize Palestinian lands

Written by: Attorney Ali Abu Hilal *
The Israeli occupation was not satisfied with the old methods that it used decades ago to facilitate and legitimize the seizure and settlement of Palestinian lands, but rather recently resorted to creating fake graves for Jews in which there are no dead people to achieve this colonial political goal that contradicts international law and decisions of international legitimacy. ..
Recently, fake graves were discovered, planted by the occupation in different areas of the lands of the town of Silwan, south of Al-Aqsa Mosque in the city of Jerusalem, by distributing huge stones, and placing them closely and parallel to appear as "cemeteries", in order to facilitate the seizure of Palestinian lands. ‏
Jerusalemite human rights organizations and activists stated that the lands of the town of Silwan have been planted with graves since the seventies of the last century, and their area is increasing and expanding with the passage of time, and these days they are distributed in several areas, most notably the neighborhood of Wadi Al-Rababa, Wadi Hilweh, Silwan Hill, Al-Harat Al-Wusta, and Al-Saloudha. These sources added that the occupation authorities began in recent months to convert a piece of land that was used as a parking lot for vehicles into a cemetery by placing “fake graves.” Wadi Hilweh and Wadi Al-Rababah, and the work of leveling the land, laying red soil, and placing huge stones in the place, in addition to hanging a banner in Arabic and Hebrew bearing the name of the cemetery, and threatening to impose financial fines in the event of dumping waste on the site.
It is noteworthy that the cultivation of graves had begun in the "Al-Saloudha" area and the central neighborhood of Silwan, with the construction of graves in them in a separate manner and distributed over the area of the land, but with the beginning of the millennium, it began to plant graves in the Wadi Al-Rababa area, then the cultivation of graves extended in other regions to reach Wadi Hilweh neighborhood "where work is taking place now"...
Jerusalemite activists explained that cultivating fake graves in the lands is a method followed by the Israeli establishment and settlement associations to confiscate and seize empty lands and flats in Jerusalem, specifically in the town of Silwan, thus preventing the residents from benefiting from the lands, investing and building in them, and obstructing the development of Jerusalemite neighborhoods. They stated that cultivating lands with fake graves is a means of confiscating the land, and therefore this cannot be objected legally. Promoting the narration, changing history, and stifling the Arab landmarks in Jerusalem, especially the vicinity of the Old City. At a time when the area of fake graves is expanding, it is clamping down on Muslim cemeteries, removing the tombstones and turning some of them into gardens.
It must be noted that after 1967 and the occupation of Jerusalem, the occupation authorities seized tens of additional dunams of land, and turned them into modern Jewish cemeteries and burial grounds, and new ones that were not there before, and did not contain evidence or remains of dead bones, in order to serve the settlement. Over the past years, the occupation has carried out major falsifications of history, antiquities, geography, and Arab-Islamic names in Jerusalem, in order to legitimize fake Jewish graves and create a Jewish holy area. The planning and implementation of planting fake graves is supervised by the municipality of The occupation, the so-called "Jerusalem Development Authority", the Ministry of Construction and Housing, the "Antiquities Authority", the "Elad" settlement association, the "Nature and National Parks Authority", and the "Jewish burial associations and companies". In addition, the lands on which the fake graves are planted were confiscated after the occupation of Jerusalem and considered among the absentees' property.
Over the past years, its ownership has been transferred to settlement associations and governmental and local authorities, and the new graves area in Silwan is a parking lot for residents’ vehicles, which they were prevented from using, so that these institutions began cultivating graves in them. With the construction of the first stone, the residents objected, demanding that the building permit be shown, so the work was stopped for a temporary period, then the occupation associations completed their work and moved to the adjacent land, leveling them and cultivating graves in them without obtaining permits, claiming that they were cemeteries for Jews and are now being rehabilitated. After that, the fake graves are considered a sacred place in which there is no room for discussion, and there is no need for licenses or entry into the ownership dispute. On the other hand, the same authorities that build fake graves demolish real graves for Muslims after exhuming them and build gardens over their remains.
It is an old and new method aimed at seizing more Palestinian lands, especially in the city of Jerusalem, to change its Arab and Islamic character and identity, and to complete the process of Judaizing it and implanting it with settlements and settlers, in violation of international law, international legitimacy resolutions, and international humanitarian law, and constitutes a war crime that warrants responsibility. International Criminal Court, according to the Statute of the International Criminal Court
* Lawyer and university lecturer in international law. ‏