Stateless Jerusalemites call on Jordan to restore their citizenship
Daoud Kuttab Al-Monitor 30/12/19
Public calls by Palestinians for the restoration of Jordanian citizenship to all Palestinian East Jerusalemites have increased in recent weeks due in part to the increased Israeli attempts to divorce Jerusalemites from any connection to the Palestinian leadership. Some 350,000 stateless Palestinians live in Jerusalem. Their plight has deteriorated over the years, especially since the 1993 PLO-Israel Declaration of Principles (also known as the Oslo Accord) that separated East Jerusalem from the rest of the occupied territories. While Jerusalem is a final status negotiation issue, the reality on the ground after a quarter of a century — especially under the right-wing Israeli government of Benjamin Netanyahu — has focused in large part on attempts to cut off any connections between Palestinians in Jerusalem and the Palestinian leadership in Ramallah . . . the Jordanian government is aware of the plight of Jerusalemites but the issue is not on the government’s agenda . . .
“We have taken note of the deteriorating situation in East Jerusalem especially after Israeli Minister of Public Security… Gilad Erdan’s decision to sever all ties between Palestinian educational institutions in Jerusalem and the Palestinian government. Some 42 schools run by the Jordanian waqf, which use Palestinian curriculum, were ordered closed last month [Nov. 6], leaving 20,000 students without any educational reference.”… On Nov. 20, Erdan closed Palestinian health, education, and family organizations and ordered a local TV company not to provide technical services to Palestine TV. The Arab Health Center operating in Silwan was also closed by orders of Erdan because it receives financial support from the Ramallah-based Palestinian government…
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