Police begin evictions, demolitions in Givat Amal
Some residents barricade themselves inside homes in protest at Tel Aviv neighborhood designated for redevelopment
Police began evicting families and demolishing homes in the Tel Aviv neighborhood of Givat Amal Wednesday, after the Supreme Court ruled that local residents did not legally own their homes or property.
Givat Amal is home to approximately 150 people and sits on land valued at billions of shekels that belongs to Israeli businessman Yitzhak Tshuva, who plans to redevelop the working class neighborhood by building luxury apartment complexes.
Givat Amal’s original residents were placed in the neighborhood by the government in the late 1940s, and despite a decades-long legal battle, the state never granted them legal ownership of their houses or property on which they lived.
Tshuva acquired rights to the property when his company Elad Israel Residence purchased the land in 1987 under the condition that the residents be compensated for leaving their homes. Since then, Tshuva has argued that the terms of the agreement should be changed since the residents are not the legal owners.
Riot police units were called to the neighborhood to carry out the court-ordered evacuations after several families refused to leave and barricaded themselves inside their homes. Four members of one Givat Amal family were arrested for protesting the evacuations by opening their gas balloon inside their home.
“The fact that they are forcibly evicting us right before the holidays is incomprehensible,” one resident told Walla news, while others expressed their disappointment that the government and courts chose to side with real estate developers and not local residents.
Wednesday’s evacuation began despite a unanimous decision by the Tel Aviv Municipality to postpone any action in the neighborhood until after the holidays.
Jewish Home MK Ayelet Shaked joined a group of residents protesting the evictions on Tuesday saying, “I sincerely hope that by tomorrow morning, Tshuva’s representatives will come to a fair and honorable agreement with the residents.”
In response, the Elad Israel Residence group said: “As we have previously stated, several courts have ruled that the current residents are squatting in the neighborhood illegally, and though we were not obligated to do so, we have offered financial settlements to families who have received eviction notices and left the neighborhood voluntarily.”
Tshuva reached a financial settlement with one more family Tuesday, in what is seen as a breakthrough in his efforts to claim the property.