SALFIT,
Tuesday, June 30, 2021 (WAFA) – Israeli occupation authorities today demolished
a shack in Sur Baher neighborhood, southeast of
Jerusalem, according to local sources.
The
sources said that staff from the Israeli municipality, under heavy protection
from the Israeli forces, escorted a bulldozer into the neighborhood and tore
down the shack.
Using
the pretext of illegal building, Israel demolishes houses on a regular basis to
restrict Palestinian expansion in occupied Jerusalem.
At
the same time, the municipality and government build tens of thousands of
housing units in illegal settlements in East Jerusalem for Jews with a goal to
offset the demographic balance in favor of the Jewish settlers in the occupied
city.
Although
Palestinians in East Jerusalem, a part of the internationally recognized
Palestinian Territory that has been subject to Israeli military occupation
since 1967, they are denied their citizenship rights and are instead classified
only as "residents" whose permits can be revoked if they move away
from the city for more than a few years.
They
are also discriminated against in all aspects of life including housing,
employment and services, and are unable to access services in the West Bank due
to the construction of Israel's separation wall.
According
to a report by the Israeli human rights group B’Tselem,
the Israeli High Court could be liable for war crimes for their policies that
led to the dispossession of Palestinians from their properties in Area C of the
West Bank.
The
report, Fake Justice, shows that the court’s support of Israeli planning policy
is tantamount to support for dispossession and forcible transfer of
Palestinians, a war crime under international law.
K.T./
K.F.