Israeli forces demolish East Jerusalem building as occupiers injure 2 Palestinians in West Bank

Israeli forces demolished a five-story residential building housing 70 Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem on Tuesday, while two Palestinians were injured in attacks by Israeli occupiers and soldiers carried out raids across the West Bank, according to local authorities and media.

Israeli forces demolished the building that contains 10 apartments in the Al-Tur neighborhood, a day after residents were given a final demolition notice, the Jerusalem Governorate said.

“Israeli authorities had pursued the residents for years with demolition orders and fines while refusing to issue them building permits,” the governorate added in a statement.

Witnesses said Israeli authorities forced residents to evacuate their apartments before the demolition, while extremist National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir arrived at the site under police protection.

The governorate accused Ben-Gvir of using the demolition for “electoral exploitation,” saying his participation represented “official incitement” against Palestinians in East Jerusalem and their presence in the city.

“Turning the demolition of Palestinian homes into an electoral scene and a show of force does not change the fact that East Jerusalem is occupied Palestinian territory,” the governorate said.

A video posted by the governorate showed Israeli forces and bulldozers at the site after the building had been reduced to rubble, with Ben-Gvir seen standing on one of the bulldozers.

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According to the Jerusalem Governorate, Israeli authorities carried out 139 demolition and land-leveling operations in East Jerusalem between July and September and issued 150 demolition, eviction and property-seizure orders.

The UN humanitarian office has documented around 170 Palestinian structures demolished in the occupied city since the beginning of 2026, mostly on the grounds of lacking Israeli-issued building permits, which it says are nearly impossible for Palestinians to obtain.

Local and international rights organizations say Israeli authorities severely restrict building permits for Palestinians in East Jerusalem while continuing home demolitions and illegal settlement expansion.

Separately, two Palestinians were also injured in attacks by Israeli occupiers in Aqraba, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society.

The group said a 23-year-old man was shot in the foot and taken to a hospital, while a 50-year-old man was beaten by occupiers and treated at the scene.

Meanwhile, Israeli forces raided the town of Bani Naim, east of Hebron in the southern West Bank, searched several homes and declared the area a “closed military zone.” Troops also converted three houses into military posts and prevented students from reaching some schools, the official Wafa news agency reported.

In Tell village southwest of Nablus, Israeli forces and occupiers returned to a home previously used as a military post and forced a Palestinian family to leave shortly after being allowed to return, Wafa said.

Separately, Israeli occupiers torched four vehicles in Aqraba, south of Nablus, and sprayed racist slogans calling for revenge, while another occupier group attempted to set fire to a poultry facility at a farm in Farkha, west of Salfit, and sprayed slogans on a livestock farm before residents confronted them.

According to the Palestinian Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission, Israeli occupiers have carried out more than 14,742 attacks across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since October 2023, killing 66 Palestinians.

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