Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah quarter, onetime home to Arab consulates

JERUSALEM

Before the 1967 Israeli occupation of East Jerusalem, many Arab diplomatic missions could be found in the historic city’s Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.

At the time, the neighborhood was home to the Egyptian, Lebanese, Iraqi, Saudi, and Syrian consulates.

But after Israeli forces occupied East Jerusalem in the Six-Day War, also known as the June War, Arab diplomatic representations in the city disappeared, while other foreign consulates remained, including Türkiye, France, Britain, Spain, and Greece.

The presence of diplomatic missions in Sheikh Jarrah has earned the neighborhood the nickname “The District of Embassies.”

“Sheikh Jarrah is considered a link between the northern city of Ramallah and other cities in the West Bank. That’s why it is sought out by diplomats,” Khalil Tafakji, a Palestinian expert on Jerusalem affairs, told Anadolu.

He said the neighborhood is home to several diplomatic missions including the Turkish, French and Spanish consulates as well as a number of government and cultural institutions.

However, there are no Arab diplomatic representations in the neighborhood.

Lebanese cedar tree

In Sheikh Jarrah, the building that used to house the Lebanese Consulate still stands, but now it is home to the Irish Consulate.

Next to the site, there is a huge Lebanese cedar tree that was planted before the Israeli occupation of East Jerusalem.

“The Lebanese Consulate was located in this building until it was closed in 1967,” Tafakji said. “This Lebanese cedar tree, however, still stands there to bear witness to that history,”

“The Egyptian Consulate was located here in Sheikh Jarrah until 1967,” he said, referring to a nearby building.

“After 1967, the consulate was closed, with the building becoming the headquarters of the French Consulate,” he added.

The neighborhood also includes a building that once housed the Syrian Consulate General.

“The Syrian Consulate was also closed in 1967,” Tafakji said. “This building is now being used as a residence for a Palestinian family.”

During the 1967 Middle East war, Israel captured the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, and the Syrian Golan Heights.

With the exception of the Sinai Peninsula, whose handover to Egypt under peace accords was completed in 1982, those territories are still in the hands of Israel.

Under international law, the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is regarded as occupied territory.

Israel’s 1981 annexation of the Golan Heights is also not recognized by the international community.

Evictions

The Iraqi Consulate was also once located in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.

“East Jerusalem was considered a second capital of Jordan after Amman. Most countries had their consulates in the city,” Tafakji said.

He explained that Palestinian families in Jerusalem used to rent out their buildings to foreign embassies.

Jerusalem remains at the heart of the decades-long Mideast conflict, with Palestinians insisting that East Jerusalem – illegally occupied by Israel since 1967 – should serve as the capital of a Palestinian state.

In 1980, Israel annexed the entire city, in a move never recognized by the international community.

The Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, according to Palestinians, is one of the areas most targeted by Israeli settlement building in occupied East Jerusalem.

In 2021, an Israeli court ordered the eviction of seven Palestinian families from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah to make way for Israeli settlers, triggering a wave of clashes between angry Palestinians and Israeli forces.

The dispute stems from the events of 1948, when hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were forcefully evicted from their homes and lands, a tragedy Palestinians refer to as the “Nakba,” or “Catastrophe.”

Years ago, Israeli authorities set up an outpost in place of the demolished Shepherd Hotel in the neighborhood.

“Israel is now transforming Sheikh Jarrah from a diplomatic area into an isolated settlement area,” Tafakji said.

• consulates
• Jerusalem
• Sheikh Jarrah