The court allowed the Tel Aviv municipality to continue construction of a Jedri Street residence in Jaffa, on a site where it is claimed that there is a cemetery • The Muslim public is expected to renew the protest

Tel Aviv District Court Judge Limor Bibi allowed the Tel Aviv municipality to continue work on construction of the Jaffa street residence on Tuesday afternoon. Tel Aviv police estimate that when the work is allowed, the protests of Jaffa residents in the area will be renewed. 

Photo: Police spokeswoman

A few weeks ago, Justice Bibi issued an interim order, after a petition was filed by the Muslim Council, claiming that building permits for works on the site were not valid. In its decision, the judge emphasized that this does not mean that the current decision is final and only on July 22 there will be another hearing on the petition filed by the Muslim Council against the Tel Aviv municipality. The Tel Aviv Municipality has applied for an advance hearing, claiming that the cessation of work is over NIS 1 million.

At a hearing held on Sunday, the petitioner's representative said that all claims about the importance of the project should be pushed aside. The works were discontinued on April 18 and resumed on June 20 and since the works were discontinued for more than one year the permit expired. The municipality had to present a document stating that the work was done by permit but was prevented from doing so because they did not have an actual work done in April 2019 and if they did not do the work on April 19, then they should renew the permit. According to the petitioners from April 2018, no work was carried out. 

On the other hand, the representatives of the municipality in court argued that the petitioners' entire purpose was to delay the project, as in all the petitions submitted to date. The works continued and were carried out all the time and even though the works have not been carried out since April 19 to June 20 this is because of the Corona emergency regulations. 

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For more than two years, Jaffa residents have been furious at the Tel Aviv-Jaffa municipality's intention to renovate the "Gagon" shelter for Derry Street, at the location of the 18th-century Muslim "Al-Assaf" cemetery where human bones were discovered. The finding also surprised the municipality because the cemetery, which was operating there during the Ottoman period, claims the municipality was evicted in 1916 following a decision by the Ottoman administration - for both sanitary reasons and to allow the urban development of the area to continue. The remains that were then found were transferred to the cemetery in Somale and in the following years, a plot was used in the compound used by the Muslim Football Club in Jaffa. In coordination with Mufti Hajj Amin al-Husseini, the British later set up customs warehouses there.

Recently, after the Tel Aviv District Court allowed the further work on the site, protest operations again began, among other things, stones were thrown on buses, fired fireworks at the police and tried to set fire to the Jaffa building. Police are now estimated, with the cancellation of the court's temporary injunction, checks will begin again.

The Tel Aviv-Jaffa Municipality said: "We welcome the court's decision allowing the work to continue to build a residential street in Jaffa, an important social project aimed at providing rehabilitation to hundreds of street people. The court rejected the petition and held that the building permit was valid and the works could be continued "N.

Ron Huldai, Mayor of Tel Aviv-Jaffa: "The court's decision proves that the municipality has worked and worked sensitively and according to the law."

Participating in the preparation of the news: Dan Lavi