TUBAS, February 4, 2016 (WAFA) – Israeli authorities Thursday demolished residential tents and animal barns village of Mekassar, in northern Jordan Valley, as well as demolished three agricultural structures in the village of Bil’in, near Ramallah, according to local sources.

Aref Daraghmeh, head of the local council of al-Maleh area, told WAFA that an Israeli army force broke into the village in the early morning hours, before they proceeded to demolish animal barns and tents used by local Palestinian Bedouins, under the pretext of construction without a permit.

Meanwhile, witnesses told WAFA that Israeli army broke into the village of Bal’in, west of Ramallah, and proceeded to demolish three structures used by local Palestinian villages for agricultural purposes, in addition to another room outside a swimming pool in the village.

Soldiers also cordoned off the area and used teargas canisters and light-bombs during the offensive in Bil’in.

Both villages are located in Area C in the West Bank, under complete Israeli military and civil control.

Over the course of 2015, Israel demolished 521 structures in Area C as well as in East Jerusalem, displacing 636 people, according to the UN monitoring group OCHA.

The vast majority of these demolitions were carried out on the grounds of construction without a permit. Between 2010 and 2014, only 1.5 percent of applications for building permits in Area C were approved by Israeli occupation authorities, OCHA adds.

M.N