Arab-Israelis issue strike call after home demolitions

By Kaamil Ahmed

JERUSALEM (AA) – Palestinian citizens of Israel are calling for a general strike Wednesday after the Israeli authorities destroyed 11 buildings in the Arab city of Qalansawe in central Israel.

The High Follow-Up Committee for Arab Citizens, which represents Palestinians living in Israel, called for the strike in response to the demolitions, which were carried out on Tuesday.

In a statement, the committee held Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu personally responsible for the demolition of the homes, which the Israeli authorities claim were built without permits.

"One thing is required: that we are strong in our response, not just with condemnation but mainly by preventing more demolitions of homes in coming weeks," Arab-Israeli lawmaker Ayman Odeh wrote on Facebook.

On Tuesday, Israeli forces also destroyed a water pipeline serving the villages of Ras al-Ahmar and Al-Hadidiya, the official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

There have been at least eight separate demolitions targeting homes or infrastructure in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem since the beginning of 2017, according to the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

According to an OCHA report released late last year, the Israeli authorities in 2016 destroyed more than 1,000 Palestinian-owned structures -- a record-high -- in the occupied territories.