Israel demolishes 3 Palestinian structures

Israeli authorities demolished three agricultural structures in the occupied Jerusalem district neighbourhoods of Silwan and Jabal Al-Mukaber this morning, according to witnesses.

Alaa Shweiki, a resident of the Al-Thuri area in Silwan, told Ma’an Israeli police and Jerusalem municipality inspectors stormed the area around his home and escorted bulldozers onto his property.

The bulldozers then demolished one structure roofed with steel tubes and tin sheets that he uses as a stable, as well as a shack he uses to store agricultural equipment.

The structures, Shweiki said, were built five years ago. He added that he had paid a fine of 40,000 shekels ($10,423) to Israel’s Jerusalem municipality two years ago for not having obtained a proper construction license.

In Jabal Al-Mukaber, witnesses said bulldozers arrived under heavy military protection and demolished a structure roofed with steel tubes and tin sheets, reportedly built without a license issued by the Jerusalem municipality.

This morning’s demolitions came a day after nine Palestinian households were left without a steady income when they were forced to demolish their own commercial stores.

On Sunday, 12 Palestinians were left homeless when they were forced to demolish their apartments in Jabal Al-Mukaber, also in accordance with a demolition order that claimed the apartments lacked proper permits.

Demolitions in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem have seen an unprecedented surge this year, with the number of structures demolished in the first half of 2016 already well exceeding the total number of demolitions carried out in all of 2015.

More than 1,383 Palestinians have been displaced since the beginning of 2016 as a result of demolitions in the occupied territory, compared to 688 Palestinians displaced over the entirety of 2015, according to UN documentation.

According to the UN, the overall rate of Israeli demolitions since 2015 has exceeded every year since the UN began monitoring the practice in 2009.