GENEVA, December 18, 2024 (WAFA) - The UN Human Rights Office said Israel is accelerating steps to consolidate the annexation of the Occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and to appropriate Palestinian lands; replacing Palestinian communities with settlers in violation of international law.
“These actions go counter to the findings of the International Court of Justice last July which concluded that the continued presence of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory is unlawful and must end as rapidly as possible and called for the immediate evacuation of all Israeli settlements in the West Bank,” said the UN Human Rights Office in a press release.
Recent developments are of particular concern with mass demolitions in East Jerusalem and demolitions carried out for the first time in a natural reserve in Area B which is under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian authorities, warned the release.
On Monday, 16 December, Israeli security forces carried out mass demolitions of Palestinian property in East Jerusalem and Hebron governorate citing the lack of Israeli building permits, which are almost impossible for Palestinians to obtain due to discriminatory planning and zoning laws aimed at quelling Palestinian construction, said the release.
This included the reported demolition of nine homes and two additional structures which displaced at least 31 Palestinians in Al Bustan area of Al Silwan neighborhood in East Jerusalem. Al Bustan area in its entirety is slated for demolition as Israel advances a plan to replace it with a new settlement project. Since 7 October of last year, 25 Palestinian homes were demolished in Al Bustan, with 100 other buildings housing 1,500 Palestinians currently under immediate threat of demolition.
“We affirm our categorical rejection of any project imposed on us through the use of threats, demolitions, and fire. We stress that our rights to housing and to a dignified life is non-negotiable,” the residents of Al Bustan area said in a statement to the media released on Tuesday, 17 December.
Israeli security forces also reportedly demolished six more homes in Anata town, northeast of East Jerusalem, which have been under the threat of demolition for the past four years.
The Palestinian residents’ petition to halt the demolition was dismissed by an Israeli court — a routine outcome in most such cases. In Hebron, commercial structures hosting about 50 Palestinian-owned shops were also demolished for lack of Israeli permits.
The shops were built to provide an alternative source of income for Palestinian families from the communities of Ar Ramdin and Ad-Dhahiriya after their permits to work in Israel and Israeli settlements were revoked in the aftermath of 7 October 2023.
With an extensive body of Israeli discriminatory laws and policies that prevent Palestinians from building on their own land, they are often forced to build without permits to accommodate their growing communities.
On 12 December, Israeli security forces demolished eight residential buildings under construction in an area classified as a natural reserve — Al Malha reserve in Bethlehem. This is the first Israeli demolition operation to take place in an area classified as “Area B” for lack of Israeli building permits.
It came after the Israeli Civil Administration issued a military order and took over the authority of the natural reserve from the Palestinian Authority last July.
“This raises concerns about the unlawful expansion of Israeli sovereignty over more and more parts of the West Bank. A web of illegal practices in July, the International Court of Justice held that the continued presence of Israel in the Palestinian Territory is unlawful as it amounts to the annexation of large parts of the West Bank and the denial of Palestinians' right to self-determination.”
The Court pointed out numerous Israeli practices used to achieve this including discriminatory home demolition and forcible transfer, the presence and expansion of unlawful Israeli settlements built on unlawfully seized Palestinian land, and systematic discrimination including through the unlawful application of Israeli laws and policies, added the release.
However, Israel’s steps to replace Palestinian communities with settlers and further extend its sovereignty over the West Bank have accelerated. Nine new settlements and 49 new outposts were built on Palestinian land between 31 October 2023 and 1 November 2024, a 193 percent increase compared to the previous year, it added.
In the meantime, 1617 Palestinian structures have been demolished in 2024 to date compared to 1175 in 2023. Israel must immediately reverse this trend and comply with its obligations under international law, including those set out by the International Court of Justice, added the UN Human Rights Office.
“Third states also have a crucial role to play in halting Israel’s unlawful conduct and must neither recognize as legal the situation arising from Israel’s unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory nor assist Israel in maintaining this situation.”
“This requires states to carefully consider a wide range of their interactions with Israel, including trade and economic relations and support for Israel’s military.”
T.R.
