Twelve homes in a West Bank village are handed demolition orders. Meanwhile, construction continues unabated in West Bank settlements.
Photos and text by Ahmad Al-Bazz / Activestills.org
Twelve Palestinian homes and structures in the West Bank village of Shufa are currently under the threat of demolition, after Israeli authorities handed out seven demolition orders on January 29. The orders previous come on the heels of five demolition orders handed out in the village earlier this month.
The orders were given under the pretext of illegal construction in Area C, which is under full Israeli military and civil control. Residents of the village said they still have 15 days to challenge the orders in Israeli courts.
Thaer Doroubi, whose new two-floor house is slated for demolition, said he is currently submitting documents to try to halt the order. “This is occupation,” he told +972, “I don’t expect to solve the case by courts, but I will try.”
Doroubi says that he decided to start a life for himself by building his own house in the Area C in his village where he owns a piece of land. “Thereis no more space in the Area B section of the village, that’s why we build in our homes in Area C.” Area B remains under full Israeli military control, although the Palestinian Authority is in charge of civil and administrative matters there.
It is almost impossible for Palestinians in Area C to obtain building permits. As Natasha Roth pointed out, between 2010 and 2014 the Civil Administration granted just 1.5 percent of requests.
On the adjacent hill, Israeli bulldozers continued their construction in the Israeli settlement of Avnei Hefetz. A new path cleared for the settlement’s fence could be clearly seen from Shufa, where residents say they are losing more and more land to the settlement.
Despite the passing of UN Security Council Resolution 2334, which demands Israel stop its settlement activity in the occupied Palestinian territories, Israel continues construction efforts in a number of Israeli settlements.
Last Tuesday, Israel approved the construction of approximately 2,500 new housing units in West Bank. On Wednesday morning it announced the construction of another 3,000 units in the occupied territories.
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West Bank demolitions: Building up and tearing down on the way to annexation
Israel issuing Palestinian building permits to further West Bank land grab