JERUSALEM, November 19, 2025 (WAFA) – Israeli occupation forces on Wednesday delivered demolition orders to four Palestinian families in Aqabat Al-Khalidiya district in occupied Jerusalem’s Old City, claiming their homes are unfit for living.

The homes belong to the Hashima, Maswadeh, Kastero, and Sidaawi families, who said they were shocked by the orders despite having lived in these properties for nearly six decades.

The families reported that Israeli authorities have for years refused to grant them permits to repair or upgrade the aging structures, and have also prevented them from carrying out essential maintenance to ensure the safety of their homes. This neglect, they said, causes the buildings to deteriorate and crack, and is later used as a pretext for demolition.

The orders come within a broader policy targeting Palestinian homes in and around the Old City, where Israeli authorities impose systematic restrictions on residents by denying building permits, levying heavy fines, and pressuring families toward forced displacement in favor of settlement expansion and settler organizations, particularly in areas near Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The families said they will turn to their lawyers to challenge the demolition orders, which threaten to leave dozens of residents homeless. They warned that carrying out these orders would constitute a new violation against the Palestinian presence in the Old City.

M.N