BICOM

The chief of Jerusalem’s police announced yesterday that he will significantly increase its presence in East Jerusalem.

The plan, according to Deputy Commissioner Yoram Halevy, will include opening five new police stations in Arab neighbourhoods of the city: Jabel Mukkaber and Zur Baher in the South, Issawiyeh in the North close to Hebrew University, and Ras al-Amud and Silwan close to the Old City. These neighbourhoods, all bordering Jewish areas, have often been the source of civil unrest such as the throwing of stones and firebombs onto passing motorists.

The new police posts will share their buildings with other municipal services such as post offices or social service offices, according to Haaretz.

Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan, posting on Facebook, said: “Very soon there will be police stations inside East Jerusalem neighbourhoods, and on the one hand the residents will receive police services like every other person in the country, and on the other hand the police will be able to enforce the law in places where they weren’t able before.”

He claimed: “Most of the residents of East Jerusalem have been waiting for this and want to live better lives; they also ultimately want quiet lives without crime or drugs in the streets. This is a historic change that will affect all Israel’s citizens.”

The plan is set to increase the number of police officers by 1,200 in the coming years and includes the deployment of a big network of CCTV cameras to be placed throughout the city, similar to the system that already exists in the Old City of Jerusalem as well as many British cities.

The plan is expected to take four to six years to complete and will cost £200m.