SAFA-  Dr. Hassan Khater, head of the International Jerusalem Center, warned that Israeli occupation forces are carrying out the most dangerous phase of efforts to alter the historical and geographic landscape of occupied Jerusalem through large-scale demolitions and land clearing around the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Khater said Israeli forces are concentrating their actions in the southeastern area surrounding the mosque, near the Umayyad Palaces, as well as in the neighborhoods of Silwan, Al-Bustan, and Batn Al-Hawa.

He noted that the measures go beyond isolated demolitions and are part of a broader plan to reshape occupied Jerusalem and alter the long-standing historical status quo at the holy site.

“Israeli occupation forces are creating new facts on the ground by demolishing Palestinian neighborhoods and expanding illegal settlements and biblical theme tourism projects,” said Khater. He highlighted that the plans are intended to reinforce Israel's historical narrative and consolidate its control over the area surrounding the mosque.

Khater identified Al-Bustan as one of the neighborhoods facing the most intense targeting. The neighborhood contains more than 100 Palestinian homes, and Israeli authorities have demolished 47 of them since October 2023, the highest demolition rate recorded there.

He said demolition orders have also been issued for 14 additional homes, reflecting an ongoing effort to displace the neighborhood's Palestinian residents.

Nearly 47% of Al-Bustan's homes have been demolished, while the latest demolition orders affect another 14% of the neighborhood's housing, Khater said. He described the figures as unprecedented, saying they demonstrate the systematic destruction of Palestinian neighborhoods surrounding the holy site.

Khater said Israeli plans include the "King's Garden" project in Al-Bustan, which calls for demolishing large sections of the neighborhood and replacing them with a biblical-themed archaeological park.

He stated the plans also include expanding the "City of David" project, linking it to the Old City, and enlarging a network of biblical and national parks around occupied Jerusalem, creating a belt around the mosque.

Khater added that Israeli forces have intensified eviction orders and settlement expansion in Silwan, particularly in Batn Al-Hawa and Al-Bustan, while continuing home demolitions, restricting Palestinian urban development, and tightening building permit policies.

He said these measures are intended to accelerate demographic change in occupied Jerusalem

Khater also stressed that developments in occupied Jerusalem have gone beyond settlement expansion and now constitute a strategic effort to reshape the city's identity and impose irreversible facts on the ground.

He called on the international community and the United Nations to take urgent action to halt Israeli settlement expansion and demolition policies and protect the Al-Aqsa Mosque and its surroundings from plans that, he said, seek to erase the city's Arab and Islamic identity.