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Israel arrests 52 Palestinians in east Jerusalem operation

Xinhua, July 27, 2016 Adjust font size:

Israeli police arrested 52 Palestinians during an overnight enforcement operation in East Jerusalem between Tuesday and Wednesday, said Israeli police Wednesday.

700 Israeli policemen and border guards were involved in the overnight enforcement operation in the East Jerusalem Palestinian neighborhoods of Issawiya and Ras al-Amud, police spokeswoman Luba Samri said.

Those arrested are suspected of being involved in criminal activities, rock throwing at Israelis and other public disturbances, as well as drug and property offenses.

In addition to the arrested 52, a further 28 Palestinians were summoned for questioning.

Representatives from the National Insurance Institute, the Jerusalem Municipality sanitation and environmental services departments and the Israeli Tax Authority were also involved in the operation.

Samri explained in the statement that the operation, the third of its kind this year, is aimed to curb illegal activities in these neighborhoods and to improve infrastructure and services for law-abiding citizens.

"The goal of the operation was to firmly deal with those involved in criminal activities and violating public order, in addition to improving the quality of life for law-abiding residents," the police spokeswoman added.

300,000 Palestinians currently live in East Jerusalem.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem, along with the West Bank, Gaza Strip and Golan Heights territories, in the 1967 Mideast War.

It then annexed East Jerusalem in 1981, in a move deemed illegal by the international community.

Palestinians living in East Jerusalem suffer from poor infrastructure and inadequate services.

About 82 percent of Palestinians live in poverty in densely-populated neighborhoods with high crime rates, according to a recent report by the Jerusalem Institute, an Israeli research center.

They rarely receive municipality approval to construct new buildings, creating a severe housing problem there, and the municipality estimates the existence of 20,000 unauthorized residential units and public buildings in those territories.

Earlier this week, Israeli authorities tore down 20 illegal structures in the East Jerusalem Palestinian neighborhoods of Kalandia and Issawiya. Endit