Israel demolishes Palestinian-owned structures in Jericho

Israeli forces yesterday levelled a number of structures belonging to several Palestinian families in the Jordan Valley, north of Jericho city in the occupied West Bank.

According to the Palestinian government news agency Wafa, Israeli bulldozers and soldiers raided the village of Fasayil and destroyed several steel structures belonging to Abed Al-Hadi Ali Hussein Obayyat, Adnan Ibrahim Abu Kharabish, and Zaid Mahmoud Ibrahim Abu Kharabish.

Israeli forces also demolished two healthcare facilities belonging to Adnan and Zaid Abu Kharabish, Wafa reported.

A spokesperson for COGAT, the Israeli agency responsible for implementing Israeli policies in the occupied Palestinian territory, was not immediately available to comment on the demolitions.

Meanwhile, earlier yesterday, Israeli authorities demolished three Palestinian structures in the neighbourhood of Silwan in occupied East Jerusalem.

Demolitions of Palestinian structures and homes 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 well exceeding the total number of demolitions carried out in all of 2015.

At least 1,569 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.