JERUSALEM, January 25, 2017 (WAFA) – Israeli forces on Wednesday demolished two Palestinian-owned commercial stores and a garage during separate incidents in occupied East Jerusalem, under the pretext of construction without a permit.
Staff from the Israeli municipality of West Jerusalem accompanied by police broke into the neighborhood of Silwan, where they demolished a commercial store and a garage.
The garage belongs to Jamal Amr, who monitors Jerusalem affairs and Israel’s violations in the city.
The municipality demolished a commercial store in Shuafat area, north of the city, also under the pretext of construction without a permit.
Nearly all Palestinian applications for building permits in Area C of the West Bank, under full Israeli military control, and in Jerusalem are denied by the Israeli authorities, forcing communities to build illegally.
In East Jerusalem, the high costs of obtaining Israeli building licenses -- reaching up to 300,000 shekels ($79,180), coupled with soaring poverty rates among Palestinians in East Jerusalem, mean many are unable to apply for the permits.
M.N/M.H
