05 Aug 2021; MEMO: Israeli officials have asked the US administration of President Joe Biden to put pressure on the Palestinian families of Sheikh Jarrah to accept the court's proposal that they pay rent to settler organisations in return for becoming 'protected tenants', Haaretz reported yesterday.
On Monday, Israel's Supreme Court proposed that Palestinian residents of the occupied Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah be given "protected tenants" status in return for them recognising the and settler organisation's ownership of the land in the area and paying it rent of 1,500 shekels ($467) each year.
Judge Yitzhak Amit said that accepting this compromise would postpone the eminent eviction of the Palestinian families, which has been the focus of international concern.
The Palestinian families did not accept the proposal, and the judges issued a seven day window for a list of the names for the Palestinians who would accept it to be submitted.
Haaretz reported a political Israeli source saying that international pressure regarding Sheikh Jarrah should be placed on the Palestinians, claiming that the Israeli court's proposal is good for them.
Another Israeli source, also reported by Haaretz, said that the Biden Administration "is worried about the eviction" of Palestinians.
The Israeli newspaper said that there is a prevailing feeling in Israel that a court's ruling could put Israel in the heart of "unprecedented confrontation" with different countries, including friendly ones.
