JERUSALEM, February 6, 2026 (WAFA) — Israeli occupation authorities on Friday forced a Palestinian citizen to carry out the self-demolition of his home in the neighborhood of Silwan in occupied Jerusalem.

The Palestinian Authority’s Jerusalem Governorate said Israeli authorities compelled Jalal Al-Tawil, a citizen of Jerusalem, to demolish his house in the Al-Bustan district of Silwan, citing construction without a permit.

Israeli authorities frequently force Palestinian citizens, particularly in occupied Jerusalem, to demolish their own homes under the pretext of lacking building permits. Those who refuse face demolition by Israeli bulldozers and are subsequently charged high demolition fees.

The Israeli municipality in Jerusalem routinely denies Palestinians building permits, while demolishing homes or forcing residents to demolish them themselves. Such practices violate international law and humanitarian principles that guarantee the right to housing and are part of a systematic policy aimed at forcibly displacing Palestinians from Jerusalem, alongside the expansion of Israeli colonies in and around the city.

M.N