Clashes between Jews, Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah in Jerusalem

Clashes were also reported between Palestinians and Israeli security forces in a number of additional incidents in Jerusalem on Saturday.

Clashes in Sheikh Jarrah in east Jerusalem, June 19, 2021 (Credit: Courtesy)
Jewish Israelis and Palestinians clashed in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of east Jerusalem on Saturday night, amid continued tensions surrounding the planned eviction of dozens of Palestinian families from the neighborhood.
Palestinian media reported that Israelis attacked the homes of Arab residents in the neighborhood, sparking clashes between the two sides, although video footage published by Otzma Yehudit showed Jewish residents sitting around a table as Palestinians threw chairs at them and other objects at them before the Jewish residents threw the chairs back.
According to Palestinian reports, Israeli security forces fired stun grenades and tear gas at Arab residents who clashed with the Jewish residents.
Palestinian residents of the neighborhood called for other Palestinian residents of Jerusalem to come to Sheikh Jarrah in order to clash with Jewish Israelis.
"This must not be passed over in silence. I am following with concern the attempts by Arab elements to take over, who are attacking Jews and trying to expel them from their place of residence," said Otzma Yehudit head Itamar Ben-Gvir on Saturday night.
"The responsibility today lies with Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, who is a friend of the Left and the Islamic Movement. He is unable to protect the residents of the Shimon Hatzadik neighborhood because he is a prisoner of the Islamic Movement, which provides support to the rioting terrorists," added Ben-Gvir.
The Otzma Yehudit leader set up a headquarters in the neighborhood amid tensions in the neighborhood last month.
Additionally on Saturday, Israeli security forces and Palestinians clashed near Damascus Gate during a demonstration by Palestinians against graffiti painted in recent days insulting the Prophet Mohammad along a highway. Some three Palestinians were arrested and a number of others were injured in the clashes, according to Palestinian reports.
Clashes were also reported between Palestinians and Israeli security forces in the Silwan neighborhood of east Jerusalem next to the Temple Mount on Saturday night, according to Palestinian reports.
Tensions in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood began in May after the Jerusalem District Court denied an appeal against a decision to evict a number of Palestinian residents of the neighborhood from their homes. The court ruled that the current residents had not paid the required rent for many years and had not been able to disprove the claims of the Jewish Israelis to the property.
The tensions surrounding the evictions, along with tensions surrounding clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinians on the Temple Mount, came to a head on Jerusalem Day, when Hamas fired rockets towards Jerusalem, sparking an 11-day conflict called Operation Guardian of the Walls. 
 
Despite a ceasefire that ended the conflict, in recent days Palestinian terrorists in the Gaza Strip have renewed launches of incendiary balloons towards Israel, sparking a number of fires. The IDF has conducted multiple airstrikes in Gaza in response.
The security cabinet is set to meet on Sunday for the first time since Bennett took office. The Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement told Egypt on Saturday that the terrorist groups had agreed to respond to any Israeli attack "in kind," warning that future attacks would "inevitably lead to a renewed military confrontation," according to Palestinian reports.