BEIT JALA, December 13, 2011 (WAFA) - Beit Jala Municipality Tuesday condemned the demolition of several houses in al-Makhrour area of Beit Jala, south of Jerusalem, according to a statement.

 

It said the Israeli army demolished several houses in the area, a traditionally agricultural valley that has been shrunk by Israeli settlement infrastructure.

 

It said, “The houses located in our town were considered to be ‘illegally built’ by the Israeli occupation authorities.”

 

“This new Israeli illegal act of aggression adds to the threats over the Cremisan valley, where the Israeli occupation pretends to build their illegal Wall, the ongoing settlement expansion in the illegal settlements of Gilo and Har Gilo as well as the newly announced settlement expansion at Efrat, in the southern Bethlehem area,” it said.

 

“The Israeli actions aim to turn Bethlehem into a canton surrounded by 19 Israeli settlements, bypass roads, movement restrictions and the Apartheid Wall,” said the statement.

 

“Our town, one of the most traditional areas for Palestinian Christian heritage, has been one of the most affected by the Israeli occupation, being reduced to less than one third of the size we used to have before the Israeli occupation began in 1967,” it said.

 

Beit Jala Municipality called upon the international community in general and churches around the world in particular to exercise pressure on Israel to end its occupation, give Palestinians back their land and grant them the right to build a future of dignity and self determination in their homeland, Palestine.

 

“We would like to reaffirm that despite the daily Israeli aggressions, our town will continue to prepare for Christmas,” it said.

 

M.H./M.S.