Jerusalem, 9 September 1998
Twenty PA Institutions, Including 11 "Ministries," Operate Illegally in
Jerusalem: Oslo Accords Prohibit PA Activity in the Capital
(Communicated by the Government Press Office)
The Agreement
Under the terms of the Oslo Accords, the Palestinian Authority (PA) is
prohibited from operating in Jerusalem.
The Interim Agreement ("Oslo 2"), which was signed on September 28, 1995,
sets limits on the PA's jurisdiction, stating that it does not include
"issues that will be negotiated in the permanent status negotiations:
Jerusalem, settlements, specified military locations, Palestinian
refugees, borders, foreign relations and Israelis" (Article XVII (1a)).
Thus, the PA is barred from exercising any authority or conducting any
activity in Jerusalem.
In the Note for the Record which accompanied the Hebron Protocol of
January 15, 1997, the PA reaffirmed that, "Exercise of Palestinian
governmental activity, and location of Palestinian governmental offices,
will be as specified in the Interim Agreement."
The Violations
The PA continues to intensify its activities in Jerusalem in violation of
the Oslo Accords. Following is a list of the 20 PA institutions operating
illegally in the city:
Palestinian "Ministries"
1) Ministry for Jerusalem Affairs - located in the Orient House and
run by PA Minister for Jerusalem Affairs Faisal Husseini, it functions as
a base for Palestinian activities in the city, including organizing
protests and press conferences, raising funds and purchasing Jerusalem
real estate on behalf of the PA.
2) Ministry for Religious Affairs - located on Shalshelet Street, at
the entrance to the Temple Mount in the Old City, it oversees Muslim
religious matters. PA Minister for Religious Affairs Hassan Tahboub
recently passed away and Yasser Arafat is expected to nominate a
replacement shortly. Ministry official Ibrahim Kandelaft acts as PA
representative to the Christian communities. He regularly participates in
church conferences and ceremonies in Jerusalem.
3) Ministry of Education - the Ministry has taken control of the
private educational system in eastern Jerusalem which serves nearly half
of the city's Arab students. Schools run by the Muslim Wakf, Christian
churches and UNRWA operate with special permits issued by the Ministry,
and they utilize curriculums, books and tests prepared by it. The
Palestinian Legislative Council recently approved the "First Palestinian
Curriculum", which will likely be introduced into schools run by the PA
Education Ministry.
4) Ministry of Health - the Ministry has intensified its activities
in Jerusalem, seeking to extend its control over health institutions in
the Arab sector (see #17 below). The Ministry issues licenses to doctors
operating in Jerusalem, and the PA Health Minister recently declared that
health institutions in Jerusalem were an integral part of the Palestinian
health system and incorporated them into the PA's five-year development
plan.
5) Ministry of Finance - the Ministry has pressured Palestinian
merchants in eastern Jerusalem to register their businesses as Palestinian
firms under PA supervision and to report regularly on their commercial
activities for tax purposes. Merchants refusing to do so have been
threatened with having their products boycotted in PA areas.
6) Ministry of Transportation - the Ministry issues licenses to
Palestinian taxis and transportation services operating in Jerusalem, and
the Ministry's Director-General is involved in establishing public
transportation lines between Sur Baher and central Jerusalem as well as
Bethlehem.
7) Ministry of Housing / Palestinian Housing Council - the Housing
Council, part of the PA Housing Ministry, oversees planning for building
projects in the PA areas and Jerusalem, and engages in fundraising on
their behalf. The Council provides loans and aid to Palestinians in
eastern Jerusalem. Members of its board of directors include the PA's
Minister of Justice and Minister of Housing. The Housing Council's
leadership has held working meetings with PA Chairman Arafat.
8) Ministry of Trade and Industry/ Palestinian Small Business
Project - located in the Wadi Joz neighborhood, the Small Business Project
is an arm of the Ministry of Trade and Industry. Its stated purpose is to
assist and encourage Palestinian small businesses. The PA uses it as a
cover for disbursing funds to various Palestinian projects in Jerusalem.
Headed by Butina Shahana.
9) Ministry of Youth and Sports - operating out of an office in
A-Ram, the Ministry runs various youth clubs and sports activities in
Arab- populated sections of Jerusalem. Under the ministry's guidance,
Jerusalem sporting groups serve as active members of PA-supervised sports
associations.
10) Ministry of Tourism / Higher Council for Arab Tourism - the
Higher Council is an arm of the Ministry of Tourism and it works in
conjunction with the Orient House, the Jerusalem District Governor and
members of the Palestinian Legislative Council to promote Palestinian
tourism projects in Jerusalem. Headed by Hani Abu Dayah.
11) Ministry of Information / WAFA - WAFA, the official Palestinian
news agency, is subordinate to the Palestinian Ministry of Information. It
opened a branch on Ibn Abu Taleb Street in the Friteh building in eastern
Jerusalem.
Other PA institutions
12) Office of the Mufti of Jerusalem and the Holy Land - located on
the Temple Mount, it is the main office of PA Mufti Ikrama Sabri. Sabri
issues religious edicts, including a prohibition on the sale of land to
Jews and on applying for an Israeli passport. He gives sermons at Al-Aksa
Mosque in which he regularly denies Israel's right to exist, glorifies
suicide bombing attacks and denies any Jewish connection to the Western
Wall. Sabri also travels to areas within pre-1967 Israel for working
meetings with Israeli Arabs.
13) Palestinian Security Forces - Palestinian security agents conduct
a range of activities in Jerusalem which include detentions, intelligence-
gathering, criminal investigations and enforcing orders and instructions
issued by PA Chairman Arafat. In an effort to silence opponents of the PA,
agents belonging to Jibril Rajoub's Preventive Security Service have
threatened and intimidated Palestinian journalists and editors as well as
critics of PA Chairman Arafat. Rajoub's men intervene in business and
other disputes, and have sought to prevent Palestinians from filing
complaints with the Israel Police. They have also punished perpetrators of
"moral crimes". PA agents serve as bodyguards for various Palestinian
personalities in Jerusalem, such as PA Mufti Ikrama Sabri, and provide
security for Palestinian institutions in the city. Palestinian security
agents are also active on the Temple Mount, where they occasionally
provide security during prayers. During Ramadan prayers, their presence on
the Mount increases. They frequently conduct patrols on major
thoroughfares in the eastern part of the city, both on foot and by car.
14) Jerusalem District Governor - The PA appointed Jamil Othman
Nasser to serve as Governor of the Jerusalem District. His office is
located in Abu
Dis, outside Jerusalem's municipal boundaries, but Nasser conducts
activities within the city, providing its residents with a range of
services and involving himself in various matters. For example, on
October
23, 1996, he joined a Force 17 in an attempt to wrest control over
the Muslim religious establishment on the Temple Mount from the
Jordanians. He also involves himself in resolving disputes among
Palestinians in Jerusalem.
15) Palestinian Legislative Council - many of the seven Jerusalem
representatives on the Palestinian Legislative Council operate out of
offices located in Jerusalem, among them Hatam Abdel Kader.
16) Arab Studies Society - operates out of the Orient House under the
leadership of Faisal Husseini. Under the cover of a research institute, it
serves the interests of the PA by carrying out surveys and obtaining
information on its behalf.
17) Al-Mokassad Hospital - The PA recently seized control over the
hospital after the personal intervention of Yasser Arafat. The PA fired
the hospital's administration and appointed its own people to replace it.
The hospital and much of its staff operate without the requisite licenses
required by Israeli law.
18) Office of Mapping and Geography - operated in the Wadi Joz
neighborhood until Israel demanded its closure in August 1996. The PA
promised to relocate the office to Abu Dis, outside Jerusalem's municipal
boundaries. Despite this commitment, the PA reopened the office in Orient
House, where it continues to operate under the direction of Khalil
Toufakji.
19) Palestinian Energy Center - located in Beit Hanina, it develops
Palestinian energy strategy and programming. Established by a
"presidential decree" of Yasser Arafat on December 20, 1993, its main
office opened on September 26, 1994. On its internet site on the World
Wide Web, the PEC states, "In July 1996, the center became part of the
President's Office, and subject to the decisions made by the President
himself."
20) Palestinian Prisoners' Club - working under the authority of the
Palestinian Ministry of Welfare, it provides loans, aid and professional
training to former Palestinian security prisoners. Though Israel ordered
it to close, it continues to operate in Jerusalem.
Recent examples of illegal PA activity in Jerusalem
- On July 1, 1998, the Palestinian Ministry of Culture sought to hold a
folklore festival at the al-Hakawati theater in eastern Jerusalem. Israeli
police canceled the event.
- On May 26, 1998, approximately 40 members of the PA's Legislative
Council (PLC), including six PA "Ministers", gathered in the Old City of
Jerusalem to protest Jewish construction. Abu Alaa, speaker of the PLC,
declared it to be an "historic event" and announced that it was the first
official PLC meeting convened in Jerusalem. Israeli police dispersed the
meeting.
- In March 1998, 16 surveyors working on behalf of the Israeli Ministry of
Transportation were detained in Jerusalem by the PA and taken to Ramallah
and Abu Dis for interrogation.
- In February 1998, the PA attempted to set up a security company in the
city to be used as cover for the operations of its security forces.
- In February 1998, the PA Ministry of Youth and Sports attempted to
convene four conferences in Jerusalem.
- In December 1997, the PA attempted to conduct a population census in
eastern Jerusalem.