As the world’s gaze remains fixed on Gaza, Israel is quietly advancing a deeply alarming campaign in occupied Jerusalem, one aimed at erasing its Palestinian identity and rewriting its history. According to Jerusalem affairs expert Fakhri Abu Diab, the occupation is exploiting the current war to push forward an aggressive Judaization agenda, intensifying demolition, displacement, and cultural distortion.

From the razing of Palestinian homes to the confiscation of property and the suffocating of local livelihoods, the Israeli authorities are systematically remodelling the city to reflect a fabricated narrative, one that seeks to erase centuries of Arab and Islamic heritage, particularly at sacred sites like Al-Aqsa Mosque. Despite decades of excavations, Israel has failed to produce archaeological proof to support its version of history. Yet, it presses ahead with the reshaping of the cityscape to fit a colonial vision.

What is unfolding is not merely cultural erasure, but a campaign of economic and social strangulation. By restricting access to services, limiting movement, and enforcing harsh administrative measures, Israel is pushing many Jerusalemites toward displacement, part of a broader scheme to empty the city of its Palestinian population without the use of visible force.

Despite these pressures, the people of Jerusalem refuse to be silenced. Their resilience in the face of calculated marginalisation stands as a powerful act of resistance. As Abu Diab asserts, the unyielding spirit of the city’s Palestinian inhabitants remains the last defence against a strategy that aims to turn Jerusalem into a city emptied of its roots.