Israel demolishes East Jerusalem building

Israeli authorities demolished an under construction building in the occupied East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Issawiya this morning, a local popular committee told Ma’an.

Local committee member Muhammad Abu Al-Hummus told Ma’an that a large number of Israeli security forces stormed Issawiya to protect bulldozers and Jerusalem municipality crew carrying out the demolition.

The bulldozers then tore down a two-story, 250-square-metre building which was under construction owned by Majdi Mustafa.

Mustafa said he had only recently started to build the structure, and had not yet obtained a construction permit from the Jerusalem municipality for it.

A spokesperson from the Israeli Jerusalem municipality did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Read: Israel demolishes Palestinian property in Jerusalem

Israeli authorities have stepped up issuing demolition warrants for Palestinians in East Jerusalem, particularly after Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barakat warned that the demolition of the illegal Israeli outpost of Amona in the occupied West Bank would be met with the mass demolition of Palestinian homes lacking the nearly impossible to obtain Israeli-issued building permits.

Last month, Israeli authorities demolished at least three homes in Issawiya in a single day.

According to UN documentation, as 6 March, 35 Palestinian-owned structures were demolished by Israel in occupied East Jerusalem since the beginning of the year, displacing at least 80 Palestinians. A total of 190 Palestinian buildings were demolished in East Jerusalem in 2016.