In two weeks, Israel demolishes 25 Palestinian structures

In the period between 11 to 24 August, Zionist regime demolished or seized a total of 25 Palestinian-owned structures in the occupied territories under the pretext of lack of Zionist regime’s-issued building permits, displacing 32 Palestinians and otherwise affecting around 160 others, according to a report by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in the occupied Palestinian territory.

Fifteen of these structures, all but two of which were livelihood-related, were demolished in eight communities in Area C of the West Bank, which is under full Zionist regime’s military control, including two in the communities of Mughayyir al Abeed and al Fakheit, both in southern West Bank district of Al-Khalil, claiming they were located in a closed Zionist regime’s military training zone, said the biweekly Protection of Civilians report.

An additional six livelihood structures were demolished in one incident in Area C al Isawiya neighborhood of occupied East Al-Quds while the rest of the structures were located in East Al-Quds, including an under-construction residential building in the Jabal al Mukkabir neighborhood, which triggered clashes resulting in one injury.

Five of the structures in East Al-Quds were demolished by their owners, who were forced to do so to avoid heavy fines. So far this year, about half of all 118 demolitions in East Al-Quds were carried out by the owners, following the issuance of demolition orders by the Zionist authorities for lack of building permit, said OCHA.

In other incidents, OCHA said one Palestinian was injured and 650 trees and saplings and other Palestinian-owned property were vandalized by assailants believed to be Zionist settlers.

In one incident, settlers stoned and injured a Palestinian worker on a land registration project in Huwwara, south of Nablus in the north of the West Bank. In four other incidents, settlers uprooted 400 olive and almonds saplings in Asira al-Shamaliya and six vine saplings in Qaryut, both in Nablus area; cut down 244 olive trees in Khirbet al Tawawin near Hebron, and damaged 16 dunums of wheat and barley crops by grazing sheep on cultivated land near Sa’ir village, also in Hebron region.

Also, settlers damaged seven cars in Yasuf village, near Salfit in the north of West Bank, and a quarry near Urif village in Nablus area, where they also sprayed graffiti, while throwing stones at cars driving near the illegal settlements of Yitzhar in the north and Kiryat Arba in the south of the West Bank.

The remaining two incidents were in Al-Khali, where settlers damaged an animal shelter and fences and stole property in al-Tuwani and the H2 area of Hebron city.