Israel must stop demolition of Palestinian homes in occupied West Bank: OCHA

Israel is accelerating steps to consolidate the annexation of the occupied West Bank, including East al-Quds; replacing Palestinian communities with settlers in violation of international law. 

In a recent report released on Wednesday, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said Israeli forces recently carried out mass demolitions of Palestinian property in the occupied East al-Quds and al-Khalil governorate citing the lack of Israeli building permits.

This included the most recent reported demolition of nine homes and two additional structures which displaced at least 31 Palestinians in al-Bustan area of al-Silwan neighborhood in East al-Quds, OCHA said. 

More than two dozen Palestinian homes were demolished in al-Bustan, with 100 other buildings housing 1,500 Palestinians currently under immediate threat of demolition.

The Bustan area in its entirety is slated for demolition as Israel advances a plan to replace it with a new settlement project. 

“We affirm our categorical rejection of any project imposed on us through the use of threats, demolitions, and fire. We stress that our rights to housing and to a dignified life is non-negotiable,” the residents of Bustan said in a statement to the media released on Tuesday.

According to the report, Israeli  forces also reportedly demolished six more homes in Anata town, northeast of East al-Quds, which have been under the threat of demolition for the past four years.

The Palestinian residents’ petition to halt the demolition was dismissed by an Israeli court, a routine outcome in most such cases.

In al-Khalil, commercial structures hosting about 50 Palestinian-owned shops were also demolished for lack of Israeli permits. 

The shops were built to provide an alternative source of income for Palestinian families after their permits to work in Israeli settlements were revoked in the aftermath of October 2023 events. 

On December 12, Israeli forces demolished eight residential buildings under construction in an area classified as a natural reserve: al-Malha in Bethlehem. This raises concerns about the unlawful expansion of Israeli sovereignty over more and more parts of the West Bank, the UN agency said. 

Recent developments are of particular concern with mass demolitions in East al-Quds and demolitions carried out for the first time in a natural reserve in Area B which is under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian authorities.

"Nine new settlements and 49 new outposts were built on Palestinian land between 31 October 2023 and 1 November 2024, a 193 per cent increase compared to the previous year.  In the meantime, 1617 Palestinian structures have been demolished in 2024 to date compared to 1175 in 2023," the report said. 

Israel must immediately reverse this trend and comply with its obligations under international law, including those set out by the International Court of Justice,  the UN agency demanded. 

"These actions go counter to the findings of the International Court of Justice last July which concluded that the continued presence of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory is unlawful and must end as rapidly as possible and called for the immediate evacuation of all Israeli settlements in the West Bank."

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