BETHLEHEM, Thursday, October 10, 2019  (WAFA) – Israeli forces today demolished a couple of Palestinian-owned houses, one of which is under construction, in the village of Kisan, to the east of the occupied West Bank city of Bethlehem.

Head of the village council Saddam Obeidat told WAFA that Israeli forces escorted a bulldozer to the village, where the heavy machinery demolished a 150-meter-squared house, displacing four people. The house belongs to Ayman Ghazal.

The forces also proceeded to demolish another house, which covered an area of 120 square meters and belonged to Ghazal’s brother, Amjad.

Israeli authorities gave out notices of demolitions against the two houses 20 days ago under the pretext that they were built without permits.

The demolition raid triggered confrontations during which Israeli soldiers fired gas bombs, leading to some getting suffocation due to inhaling the toxic gas.

In recent years, Israeli occupation authorities demolished hundreds of homes in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem on the grounds of lacking an Israeli construction permit, which is almost impossible to obtain for Palestinians under current Israeli policies.

Israel refuses to permit any Palestinian construction in Area C, makes up more than 60 percent of the occupied West Bank and falls under full Israeli military rule, forcing Palestinians to build without a permit to provide shelters for their families.

K.T./ K.F.