Israel military demolishes Palestinian village in Masafer Yatta to make way for Jewish settlers

Israel’s military demolished a Palestinian village in the occupied West Bank on Monday, as part of an increased campaign to displace Palestinians and make way for incoming Jewish settlers.

According to Oscar winner Basel Adra – a Palestinian filmmaker, journalist, and activist from the area – on Monday morning the Israeli occupation’s military bulldozers stormed the Palestinian bedouin village of Khalet Al-Dab in the occupied West Bank area of Masafer Yatta, demolishing a significant part of it and leaving dozens of Palestinians displaced.

According to the head of the village’s council, Mohammed Rabia, the destroyed property consisted of nine houses, five tents and five animal enclosures, resulting in the loss of significant infrastructure in the village.

The demolitions were confirmed by the Israeli military’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), and came after Tel Aviv reportedly informed Palestinian officials on 1 May that occupation forces planned to carry out the demolition of 106 buildings in the West Bank’s Tulkarm and Nur Shams refugee camps for “military purposes”.

READ: Israeli settlers build new settler road as soldiers loot Palestinian homes in Masafer Yatta