Ramallah, August 15 (RHC)-- Israeli troops have destroyed several Palestinian homes funded by the United Nations in a Bedouin village located in the southern West Bank. 

According to locals of Khashem al-Daraj, Israeli bulldozers escorted by troops tore down two houses on Monday. Several bulldozers were also escorted by Israeli forces to the nearby Bedouin village of Umm al-Kheir. 

A recent report by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) showed that Israeli authorities have demolished or seized 1,089 Palestinian-owned structures since the start of the last year up until December 28th.  The demolitions have left some 1,593 Palestinians homeless and affected the lives of another 7,101, according to the report released on December 29, 2016. 

The UN also notes that he “vast majority” of the Palestinian structures are destroyed or seized because the Israeli policies made it virtually impossible for Palestinians to obtain building permits. 

Israeli demolitions of Palestinian homes and structures have raised alarm among diplomats and human rights groups over what they regard as the Tel Aviv regime’s continued violation of international law.