“Good news from eastern Jerusalem!” reported Jerusalem Councilman Arieh King on Wednesday, sarcastically announcing that the Municipality finally enforced building laws in a region where illegal Arab construction is rampant; their target – sukkah boards left up at a synagogue.

Writing on his Facebook page, King wrote sardonically “the Jerusalem Municipality and Jerusalem police are enforcing the law over the Green Line.”

“Hashaish Street was blocked in (the southern) neighborhood of Gilo, and dozens of officers and Municipality clerks arrived to the synagogue to destroy an ‘illegal pergola’ – excuse me, to remove the sukkah boards left since Sukkot (last October) in the synagogue yard,” wrote King tongue-in-cheek, along with pictures of the demolition.

The councilman continued mockingly “the boards were placed only three to four months ago, and already the law enforcement system carried out the law, great job! As a member of the Jerusalem city council I have to write that it really encourages me that the officers and Municipality clerks dared to cross the Green Line and enforce the law.”

“I am certain that after destroying the sukkah in the synagogue’s yard, the convoy of law enforcers will continue to the (Arab majority) neighborhoods: Tzur Baher, Jabel Mukaber, Beit Safafa, and others. In these communities and others in eastern Jerusalem were built 57 illegal mosques already many years ago,” he wrote.

King concluded “so if you were looking for good news on this gray and wintry day, you got it: Municipality clerks are enforcing the law over the Green Line and the Jerusalem police even dared to accompany them.”

The comment is made all the more poignant by the fact that King has reported since Binyamin Netanyahu took office in 2009, police have not been sent to accompany building inspectors to enforce laws on rampant illegal Arab construction in the eastern part of the city, leading to a massive drop in demolitions conducted against illegal Arab building.

There are currently over 40,000 illegal Arab housing units in eastern Jerusalem, reports King. He has warned that along with mayor Nir Barkat’s push for massive Arab construction projects and Netanyahu’s freeze of Jewish construction, the stage is set for a de facto division of the city.

King has already noted that Jews have been forbidden from entering eight neighborhoods in Jerusalem since Barkat and Netanyahu took office in 2009, including the neighborhoods he mentioned where the 57 illegal mosques stand.