Politics of Informal Urbanization and the Battle for Urban Rights in Jerusalem

Israeli authorities have exploited urban planning as a tool of geopolitical control to shape the demographic and spatial landscape of East Jerusalem, favoring Jewish hegemony while marginalizing Palestinian communities. Since 1967, de jure planning measures have left over 11,000 Palestinian houses in East Jerusalem under demolition threat, displacing a quarter of families. The study reveals that Israeli policies, including the separation barrier and settlement expansion, artificially fragment Palestinian neighborhoods, undermining their urban contiguity despite legal designations as green areas. While Palestinian communities have developed 'bottom-up' alternative plans, these lack strategic cohesion or widespread adoption, highlighting systemic failures in meeting basic housing and planning rights.

El-Atrash, A. (2016). Politics of Informal Urbanization and the Battle for Urban Rights in Jerusalem. Jerusalem Quarterly, (65), 104. https://doi.org/10.70190/jq.i65.p104