Jerusalem Pulse: Recent Research Roundup

Jerusalem Pulse is a periodic digest of the latest research shedding light on the multifaceted issues surrounding the lives of Palestinians of Jerusalem.

Jerusalem Story has curated a selection of key articles, papers, and reports by researchers and relevant NGOs, both local and international, that offer insight into some of the exceptional challenges faced by the Palestinians of Jerusalem.

This roundup aims to monitor and document trends as they unfold over time and will serve as a vital resource for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the evolving dynamics, geopolitical developments, socioeconomic trends, human rights concerns, and scholarly analysis concerning the Palestinians of Jerusalem.

Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association published a summary of arrest campaign data from October 7, 2023, until April 22, 2024. The report showcases the total number of arrests in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since the beginning of the war on Gaza, which exceeded 8,425. Nearly 540 of these were children; 66 journalists were also arrested during this period. Additionally, during these arrest campaigns, Israeli forces carried out extrajudicial killings, including individuals from the families of detainees. Until the release of this report, at least 16 prisoners have died in Israeli prisons and camps after October 7.1

Addameer, along with al-Haq and other human rights organizations, sent a joint urgent appeal (April 17) to 11 United Nations (UN) Special Procedures, and the UN Commission of Inquiry (CoI), calling for urgent intervention in light of the alarming increase in reports of torture, and other cruel treatment inflicted upon Palestinian prisoners and detainees by the Israeli forces.

In a case analysis for the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies, human rights lawyer Nizar Ayoub details the treatment of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails since October 7, 2023. He takes stock of the current situation, including the enormous numbers of Palestinian men, women, and children arrested and the fact that the largest group among the 9,312 “security prisoners” held in Israeli jails as of April 2024 was administrative detainees (totaling 3,661).2 He explains how administrative detention can be reviewed indefinitely without any legal review or process, essentially condemning the detainee to imprisonment without any legal process, charges, or sentence term.

Ayoub then details the range of intensified conditions Israel has imposed on prisoners since the war began, capitalizing on the state of emergency to create “conditions of extreme cruelty.” For example, according to a report compiled in February by Israel’s State Comptroller for the Ministry of Justice, “at the al-Moskobiyya detention centre in central Jerusalem, electricity to the cells was cut off daily from 5:00 a.m. until 9:00 p.m., meaning prisoners stayed in the dark all day, including when eating. Mattresses and blankets are taken from them during the day, and they are prevented from going out into the prison yard. Some prisoners said that they had not seen daylight since their detention.”3 The analysis shows how the dire and inhumane conditions imposed on Palestinian prisoners violate international human rights law and international humanitarian law.

On May 30, 2024, Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor released a comprehensive report of Israeli methods of abuse and torture against Palestinians from Gaza detained since October 7, 2023, called “Hostages of Israeli Revenge in the Gaza Strip: Torture and Inhumane and Degrading Treatment against Palestinian Prisoners and Detainees in Israeli Detention Centers.” They compiled the data by interviewing 100 people, males and females and four children from across the Gaza Strip who were detained and subsequently released. They conclude:

Although this report pertains to Gaza not East Jerusalem, we include it in this month’s roundup as it opens an important window on Israel’s treatment of prisoners generally. As noted elsewhere in this issue of the roundup, conditions for Palestinian “security” prisoners have deteriorated sharply since October 7, 2023.

Since its authorization on January 1, 2024, the plan to establish a new large settlement along Jerusalem’s southern edge has been progressing at an unprecedentedly rapid pace. On April 16, 2024, barely four months after authorization, the Ministry of Housing issued a tender for the construction of 1,047 housing units in the Lower Aqueduct settlement (out of a total of 1,446 planned units). In response to the development, Peace Now’s Settlement Watch warned that the strategic plan will severely impact the possibility of a continuous urban Palestinian connection between Jerusalem and Bethlehem.

Authored by Anna Roiser, “Territory or Commodity: Land, Law, and Narrative in Israel and East Jerusalem,” was posted online in April 2024, and will be featured in the upcoming edition of The Palestine Yearbook of International Law.5 The article examines the reciprocal relationships between property and sovereignty, and law and narrative. It argues that Zionist-Israeli narratives and legal practices conceptualize Jewish-held land as territory and Palestinian-held land as a commodity, legitimizing the use of property law to advance Jewish sovereignty. Through analysis of three eras of the Israeli land regime and two Israeli Supreme Court judgments, the study reveals how law and narrative reinforce each other. It further explores the legal mechanisms of land transfer in East Jerusalem, offering insights into the dispossession of Palestinians and the limits of Zionist-Israeli legal and political discourse.

In its Settlement and Annexation report, the Foundation for Middle East Peace highlighted the Israeli Cabinet’s decision on April 8, 2024, to transfer the Real Estate Enforcement Division from the Finance Ministry to the Ministry of National Security under Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. This gives the far-right minister power over demolitions and housing enforcement in East Jerusalem, as the Real Estate Enforcement Division has the authority to enforce against illegal construction in East Jerusalem and conduct demolitions and impose fines.

Peace Now also criticized this transfer of power to a minister “who has previously been convicted of inciting racism and supporting a terrorist organization,” in a recent statement. The organization emphasized that law enforcement authorities under the responsibility of Ben-Gvir have proven to “exacerbate tension, violence, and hatred between the state and its citizens.”6

Bimkom and Ir Amim released a new policy brief entitled “East Jerusalem in the Shadow of the War: Acceleration of New Settlements Juxtaposed with a Stark Rise in Home Demolitions” on April 16, 2024. The brief includes a compilation of the government’s new settlement plans, with details about their status and progression. It also provides key analysis on the strategies and mechanisms being applied to accelerate settlements and seize land and their ramifications on the city and its Palestinian residents.

According to the policy brief, measures are being taken to establish eight new settlements in East Jerusalem within or adjacent to Palestinian neighborhoods with a total of over 12,000 housing units. In juxtaposition to this major surge of new settlements, Ir Amim and Bimkom report that 98 Palestinian homes were demolished between October 7, 2023, and March 10, 2024, marking a nearly twofold monthly increase compared to the period preceding the war.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN-OCHA) continues to monitor demolitions and displacement in the occupied Palestinian Territories (oPT). According to the latest OCHA data, last updated June 10, 2024, 137 structures were demolished in East Jerusalem this year, resulting in the displacement of 192 Palestinians and affecting over 53,000 residents.7 The majority of these demolitions took place in the neighborhoods of ‘Anata, al-‘Isawiyya, Jabal Mukabbir, and Silwan, and targeted primarily residential, agricultural, and livelihood structures. The displaced residents include children (43.7 percent) and women and girls. As for the demographics of the displaced Palestinians, they include 54 percent women and girls.8

The International Law and International Legal Thought blog Völkerrechtsblog recently featured an article by Moritz Rhades, entitled “Settler Violence through the Lens of State Responsibility.”9 The article examines the surge of settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, applying the framework of international law to explore whether such acts can be attributed to the State of Israel.

In contrast to Israel’s obligation under international law to protect the civilian population under its occupation from settler violence and displacement, the article highlights evidence of Israel’s endorsement of settler violence, which opens the door for attribution. The article highlights:

The author concludes that fulfilling the mandates of international law requires Israel to effect a dramatic change in its settlement policy.

Adalah—The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel released an infographic report titled “The Persecution of Palestinian Students in Israeli Universities and Colleges during the War on Gaza.” The report provides data on disciplinary actions against Palestinian students—citizens of Israel and residents of East Jerusalem—for their social media activity from October 7, 2023, to March 25, 2024. This data is based on 124 cases of students who sought legal counsel from Adalah.

The report analyzes the types of social media posts leading to disciplinary proceedings and their outcomes, including acquittal, suspension, expulsion, educational punishment, and police referral. Adalah found cases of expulsion without due process and noted that in almost half of all cases, students were suspended before any disciplinary proceedings. Notably, the majority (77 percent) of students facing disciplinary action are women.11

The report identifies 37 academic institutions involved in cases against Palestinian students, including Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. These academic institutions “exceeded the authority granted to them by the Student Rights Law—2000,” according to Adalah.

The study “Opaque Algorithms, Transparent Biases: Automated Content Moderation during the Sheikh Jarrah Crisis,” featured in the First Monday journal,12 examines the dual role of social media platforms as tools for human rights activism and as entities driven by corporate interests, focusing on the May 2021 Sheikh Jarrah events in East Jerusalem. During this period, Palestinian activists noted increased automated content moderation, such as shadow banning and content removal.

By surveying and interviewing affected users and political influencers, authors Norah Abokhodair, Yarden Skop, Sarah Rüller, Konstantin Aal, and Houda Elmimouni assess the impact of these practices on activism. The analysis highlights issues with the transparency of automated content moderation, revealing perceived censorship by pro-Palestinian activists due to opaque technological mechanisms. These findings raise concerns about algorithmic harms and the centralization of power in digital spaces, with significant implications for the future of activism.

In a working paper published by the Governance and Local Development Institute at the University of Gothenburg, author Hannah E. Bagdanov examines how social norms influence Palestinian engagement with Israeli state-provided goods, services, and institutions (GSI) in East Jerusalem. Since most Palestinians contest Israeli sovereignty, the author asks, how is their pursuit of state resources affected?

Using data from 55 interviews and surveys, Bagdanov shows that collective social norms determine the acceptability of a particular state-provided GSI. Acceptable GSIs see widespread engagement, while anti-normalization norms (tatbi‘a) lower engagement in select sectors. The study suggests that social norms, rather than material factors, drive state interaction, depending on the sector in question.13

The Arab Center for the Advancement of Social Media (7amleh) issued a position paper regarding the digital discrimination practiced by PayPal, titled “Unravelling PayPal’s Bias: Position Paper on Discrimination against Palestinians.”14 The paper criticizes PayPal’s discriminatory policies against Palestinians who are prevented from using its services.

The paper assesses the readiness of the Palestinian digital economy to engage in online payment and indicates that denying Palestinians access to PayPal services is a result of “clear political bias and a violation of Palestinian consumer rights, labor rights, and development rights.” It is also a violation of fundamental international treaties on human rights, United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, according to the report.

In a study published by the University of Johannesburg and Unisa Press, Birzeit University scholars Rania Qassrawi and Refa‘ Al-Ramahi explore the challenges and discriminatory practices encountered by Palestinian students from Jerusalem as a minority within Israeli-occupied higher education institutions.

Using a descriptive design, the study uses data collected from 23 Jerusalemite students studying in Israeli colleges, revealing the challenges and apartheid acts they face. The analysis exposed cultural, academic, political, and financial hurdles, along with discriminatory experiences in their pursuit of academic services. The study demonstrates how “the educational system can serve as a ‘soft’ weapon prolonging ignorance, particularly when under the control of an occupying force catering to a minority, as seen in Jerusalem.”15

Mayis Eissa and Anat Zeira investigated the perceptions of Palestinian families in East Jerusalem whose young children were removed from their homes by an Israeli court order. Focusing on the trauma experienced by the children and their responses to the removal, their analysis identified the risk factors contributing to the children’s cumulative trauma, such as abuse, neglect, and living in a conflict zone. These factors amplify the children’s vulnerability, compounded by a lack of early childhood educational services in East Jerusalem. The findings, featured in the journal Child Abuse & Neglect (vol. 153, July 2024), underscore the need for policymakers to allocate resources to support these families.16