A battle over the identity of the Damascus Gate .. That is why the confrontations have continued in Jerusalem for 12 days

The clashes have not subsided in Jerusalem for 12 days.

Rather, it expanded from the vicinity of Bab al-Amud (one of the gates of the Old City) to include several neighborhoods in the east of the city, in opposition to the Israeli measures, which coincided with the first day of the month of Ramadan, and through which the occupation tried to change the features of the amphitheater Bab al-Amud and prevent the Jerusalemites from gathering in it.

At first it might seem to some that the confrontations erupted only when the police set up iron mounds in the place.

However, Jerusalemites agree that the main battle at Bab al-Amud is a battle over "identity."

The head of the Jerusalem Committee against Judaization, Nasser Al-Hidmi, affirms that the battle is primarily a battle over identity, and that what inconvenienced the occupation authorities and pushed them to carry out all the military and iron barriers they did is that the Damascus Gate has become a national and social icon not only for Jerusalemites.

It is for all Palestinians.

In his speech to Al-Jazeera Net, Al-Hidami added that all the measures that targeted this gate and its surroundings after the 2017 Lions Gate endowment, including the installation of surveillance cameras and the installation of 4 military points, did not discourage Jerusalemites from gathering at Bab al-Amud as the "greenhouse" that they resort to for peace, protest and practice. Social activities.

This insistence on steadfastness despite the detailed monitoring of the movements of everyone who passes and sits in the place angered the occupation, according to Al-Hummi, especially since this door is used by Jews to reach the Al-Buraq Wall, and the continued presence of this large number of Palestinians on its runway constitutes for them a security threat, so the occupation authorities seek To radically change this reality.

The destruction of the Jerusalem influx of Al-Bab

Al-Hudmi points to another factor, which is that the Amoud Gate is the main artery that connects to the markets of the Old City, which the occupation works daily to kill and close the doors of its shops, and therefore “the occupation plans to destroy the social flow through the Amoud Gate to kill the rest of the markets, and to control a larger number. Of real estate in the Old City. "

However, magic turned against the magician, according to Al-Hudmi’s description of the outcome of the confrontations in the city, which the occupation expected would not escalate, and that its last measures would pass unnoticed.

But he was shocked by the challenge of the young Jerusalemite and his bare chest, standing in front of his various weapons.

He concludes that the occupation "miscalculated, expecting its measures to pass unnoticed, because the Jerusalemites are exhausted after the Corona pandemic, and he thought that they wanted calm and economic recovery for the city after the closure, but he was surprised that the city's residents are rising up, and they only care about grabbing their right to the place."

Judaization of public spaces

In turn, the lawyer specializing in Jerusalem cases, Khaled Zabarqa, affirmed that the main battle at the Damascus Gate is a battle over the identity of this section.

"Through my follow-up of the Israeli behavior, there has been an escalation in recent measures to Judaize the public sphere, not only in Jerusalem, but in all of the Palestinian territories, and the goal is to make the issue of the Jewishness of the state a realistic and tangible matter that has symbols in the public sphere," he said.

Consequently, the Palestinians who stay up at the Damascus Gate during the nights of Ramadan pose a threat to the Jewish identity of the door with regard to Israel, which is why it seeks to expel them and replace them with Jews.

In order to impose a new reality not on the Damascus Gate, but on the entire Old City, according to lawyer Zebaraqa.

"We must not forget that the 2020 plan, drawn up by the Israeli government, aims in one of its articles to Judaize the entire Old City, and they are achieving this by imposing new facts on the ground after the erasure of the Arab symbols in the region," he added.

Regarding the reaction of the Jerusalemites towards the recent Israeli measures, Zebaraqa said that everyone has become accustomed to the fact that the Jerusalemites are the spearhead in the battle of identity over Jerusalem and the holy sites, especially the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, and that the mythical manifestations of heroism that the Jerusalemite youth have shown since the beginning of the month of Ramadan can not be found in Elsewhere, the youth "face daily huge military reinforcements with their bare chests and without any tools to defend themselves, and by force of their will and solidity of their position, they are able to defeat the brute Israeli force."

Will Israel give up?

As for the possibility for Israel to descend from the tree and submit to the desire of the street, as happened in the gifts of the Tribes Gate and the Gate of Mercy.

But he did not give up his plans on the other hand, and is trying to find a way out by seeking the help of religious and popular leaders to calm the street.

He concludes his speech to Al-Jazeera Net by saying that the Jerusalemite street is not waiting for anyone in the matter of moving towards victory for his fateful causes, and he has had rich experiences in how to deal with the occupation policies and stand against them.

In fact, it is not possible to predict the future of this popular movement now, and the means for its development.

However, there are many factors that may contribute to its escalation, especially in light of the extremists' insistence on carrying out a mass storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the 28th of Ramadan on the occasion of the so-called "Day of the Unification of Jerusalem," which coincides with the anniversary of the occupation of the eastern part of Jerusalem and its annexation to Israel.