Israeli army bulldozer demolishing a modest European Union-funded home for impoverished Palestinians in Masafer Yatta. (WAFA photo/Mashhour Wihwah) 

HEBRON, August 14, 2017 (WAFA) – Israeli forces Monday demolished three European Union-funded homes in the village of Khashm al-Darj in Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron, according to a local activist.

Coordinator of the anti-wall, anti-settlements committee in southern Hebron Rateb al-Jabour told WAFA that a heavy army force closed off the area and brought bulldozers to demolish the three homes.

He said the demolition left more than 20 people from the Hathaleen clan homeless.

He said the village’s 200 residents who live off agriculture and livestock breeding are threatened with expulsion because Israel says the area is used for military training.

Masafer Yatta is classified as Area C, which is under full Israeli military control. Area C makes up around 60 percent of the area of the occupied West Bank, which Israel plans to annex after expelling its Palestinian population.

The EU has strongly criticized Israel’s demolition of structures it has provided to Palestinians in Area C as part of its humanitarian assistance program.

K.T./M.K.