Israeli forces demolish a Palestinian family’s makeshift homes in Silwan neighborhood in East Jerusalem. (Photo: PIC)

Ramallah, February 18 (RHC)-- A Palestinian family has been displaced after Israeli bulldozers demolish their makeshift homes in a neighborhood in occupied East Jerusalem al-Quds.  Bulldozers from the Israeli municipality razed houses belonging to the family of Abu Rumouz in Ras al-Amud neighborhood of Silwan, rendering their residents homeless, the Palestinian Information Center reported, citing local sources.  The Israeli regime said the homes had been built with no permits.

Throughout the years, Israel has frequently demolished Palestinian homes, while at the same time expanding its settlements for Israelis in occupied Palestinian territories, which are all illegal under international law.

The Israeli rights group B’Tselem said last month that the regime had demolished 729 Palestinian buildings in 2020 on the pretext of lacking construction permits.  Sometimes, Tel Aviv even orders the Palestinian owners to tear down their own homes or pay the demolition costs to the municipality.

A new report says Israeli regime has demolished at least 178 buildings in the West Bank since the beginning of this year, leaving hundreds of Palestinians homeless.  Recent days have seen an escalation of similar atrocious acts committed by Israel against Palestinians as the regime works to consolidate its occupation of East Jerusalem al-Quds and other occupied lands.

On Monday, Israeli authorities forced two Palestinian families in Jerusalem al-Quds to demolish their homes and another family to demolish their cattle sheds. On Saturday, they forced a Palestinian man to demolish his family’s residential tent in Khirbet al-Tha`la hamlet, east of Yatta, south of al-Khalil.

Israel’s house demolitions have been met with strong criticism from the United Nations, leading human rights groups, and even the regime’s own allies such as the European Union.

Last week, the European Union called on Israel to stop its demolition of Palestinian homes, which it described as a “regrettable trend of confiscations and demolitions seen throughout last year.”