JERUSALEM, Saturday, June 8, 2024 (WAFA) – Israeli occupation authorities today forced a Palestinian to demolish his own residential building in the town of Jabal Mukaber, south of occupied Jerusalem, according to a local source.
Atta Shqairat said that he was forced by the occupation authorities to tear down his 6-storey building, with an area of 580-square-meter, purportedly for being built without a license, leaving 50 people homeless.
He added that attempts to obtain a license over the past years did not help him, particularly after the occupation court issued a demolition decision against the building in 2007.
He added that he had carried out the demolition of his house to avoid paying exorbitant fines should the occupation municipality of Jerusalem demolish the structure on its own.
He further said that he had to carry out the demolition himself in order to avoid the destruction that would cause following the demolition of the building.
Using the pretext of illegal building, Israel demolishes houses regularly to restrict Palestinian expansion in occupied Jerusalem.
At the same time, the occupation municipality and government build tens of thousands of housing units in illegal colonies in East Jerusalem for Jews to offset the demographic balance in favour of the Jewish colonists in the occupied city.
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