96 Palestinian buildings demolished in January

Palestine

Published: 2023-02-01 15:12

Last Updated: 2024-03-28 08:16


Editor: Talah Turk

Picture from WAFA
Picture from WAFA

Since the beginning of this year, the Israeli Occupation has demolished a total of 96 homes and commercial establishments in different areas of the West Bank.

Most demolished buildings were in and around Jerusalem, as well as the Jordan Valley, according to Roya Palestine’s latest figures.

Currently, there are approximately 42,000 homes threatened with demolition, of which 22,000 under the pretext of being located in areas "C" and 20,000 under the pretext of “building without a permit.”

-- Why are these demolitions happening? --

The reasons behind these demolitions are threefold. First, the pretext of building without a permit, mostly in Jerusalem.

Notably, the Israeli Occupation does not give building permits in the first place, therefore Palestinians are forced to reside in homes without permits.

The second argument is that houses are located in the area "C," according to the Oslo Accords of 1994.

The third argument, which applies to homes in the Jordan Valley, is that the homes are located in areas designated for the Israeli Occupation military training.

Last but not least, they often demolish the homes of resistance fighters and Palestinian who carry out operations against the Israeli Occupation.

Notably, the Israeli Occupation national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir had recently issued instructions to speed up demolitions in occupied East Jerusalem under the pretext of preventing unlicensed construction.

-- How are the Palestinians fighting back? --

Palestinians began a general strike in the town of Jabal Al-Mukaber in Jerusalem, in protest of the Israeli Occupation’s home demolitions.

The people declared civil disobedience and blocked the streets with tires and oil to prevent the Israeli Occupation Forces from entering the town to carry out demolitions.