The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem on Wednesday denounced what it described as an "unlawful and illegitimate" Israeli seizure of its property in the eastern part of the city earlier in the week.
In a statement, the Patriarchate "expressed grave concern over the Israeli raid and land grab targeting its Church property in Silwan", a predominantly Palestinian neighbourhood in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem.
It said that during the operation, which took place on Monday, "the Patriarchate's representative was forcibly removed, his equipment was confiscated, trees were uprooted, and the property was enclosed with fencing and gates".
"The incident constitutes an unlawful and illegitimate seizure of established Church property in the heart of Jerusalem," the statement added, calling it part of "a wider pattern of escalating assaults aimed at weakening the indigenous Christian presence in the Holy Land".
Referring to the incident in a Facebook post, one of Jerusalem's deputy mayors, Arieh King, said that "the municipality, accompanied by the Israeli police, evicted (an) offender" who he said had taken over the land without authorisation.
"Very soon, restoration work will begin and, upon its completion, the site will be opened to the public as part of the City of David National Park," he added, referring to an Israeli archaeology and tourism project in Silwan.
King later told AFP that the plot of land was "intended for the construction of a municipal road", adding that he was not aware of any claims by the Orthodox Patriarchate regarding the land.
The Silwan neighbourhood of east Jerusalem, which has been occupied and annexed by Israel since 1967, lies at the foot of the Old City's southern wall.
"Israeli authorities are accelerating home demolitions and forced evictions of Palestinian residents in the Silwan district of occupied East Jerusalem," Human Rights Watch said on Wednesday.
Dozens of Palestinian homes have already been demolished by the Jerusalem municipality after their construction was declared illegal under Israeli law.
"The forcible deportation or transfer of the population of an occupied territory... is a violation of international humanitarian law and amounts to a war crime," Human Rights Watch said.
The demolitions are to make way for the "King's Garden" project to extend the City of David, which is run by the Elad settler organisation.
Israel regards east Jerusalem as an integral part of its capital, while the Palestinians want to make the city the capital of their future state.
The UN deems Israel's annexation of east Jerusalem illegal, and does not recognise the city as Israel's capital.
It regularly condemns Israeli measures aimed at altering the demographic composition of the predominantly Palestinian eastern part of the city as illegal under international law.
