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Israel soldiers orders Palestinian families to demolish their home

August 26, 2020 at 3:42 pm

Palestinian boys sit near rubble after Israeli authorities demolished their house in the West Bank on 3 June 2020 [AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP/Getty Images]

Israeli occupation forces issued demolition orders to two Palestinian-owned homes in Al-Maniya village located in north-east of Bethlehem, reported Wafa news agency.

Head of Al-Maniya Village Council, Zeyad Kawazba, told Wafa that Israeli forces stormed the village and handed military orders to demolish two houses, because they were allegedly built without the impossible to obtain construction permits.

A restrictive planning regime applied by Israeli authorities makes it almost impossible for Palestinians to obtain building permits in what the Oslo Accords labelled as ‘Area C’ of the West Bank, which falls under both Israeli military and administrative control, impeding the development of adequate housing, infrastructure and livelihoods.

The houses belong to local Palestinians, identified as Yousef Jabbarin and his brother, Shadi Jabbarin, and are currently inhabited by their families.

Located some nine kilometres to the south-east of Bethlehem, Al-Maniya has a population of some 1,450 and occupies a total area of 8,908 dunums (8.9 square kilometres).

Israel’s widely practiced policies of home demolitions targeting entire families are acts of illegal collective punishment and come in direct violation of international human rights law.

READ: Israel forces Palestinian family to demolish their home or risk hefty fines