Israeli army demolishes Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem village

By Qais Abu Samra

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) - The Israeli army demolished on Monday four Palestinian homes in the village of Al-Walaja, in the southern part of East Jerusalem, under the pretext of unauthorized construction.”

“A military force raided the village, which lies in the southern part of the occupied West Bank, and began demolishing four homes, claiming they were built without permits,” Khader Al-Araj, the head of the village council, told Anadolu.

He clarified that “the lands where the demolition took place are part of Bethlehem and administratively within the boundaries of the nearby Jerusalem Municipality.”

“Israel is working to pressure residents to leave their lands,” he said.

“Everything is at risk of demolition under the pretext of unlicensed construction, while there is significant settlement expansion at the expense of citizens' lands,” Al-Araj added.

Palestinian, Israeli, and international human rights organizations say that the Israeli municipality in Jerusalem grants building permits to Israeli settlements in the city while imposing strict restrictions on issuing permits to Palestinians.

Israel demolished 318 Palestinian structures in the occupied West Bank during the first half of 2024, according to the state-run Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission.

International law regards both the West Bank and East Jerusalem as occupied territories and considers all Israeli settlement-building activity there illegal.

Tensions have been high across the occupied West Bank since Israel launched a deadly military offensive against the Gaza Strip, which has killed nearly 38,600 victims since Oct. 7.

At least 574 Palestinians, including at least 136 children, have since been killed and nearly 5,350 others injured by Israeli army fire in the occupied territory, according to the Health Ministry.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its military operation in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.

* Writing by Mohammad Sio.