JERUSALEM, Monday, July 22, 2019 (WAFA) –  Palestinian officials today described Israel’s demolition of Wadi al-Hummus homes in East Jerusalem’s Sur Baher neighborhood as a war crime.

The head of the Anti-Wall, Anti-Settlements Commission, Walid Assaf, told WAFA that so far a two-story building was demolished and another one, consisting of several floors, was evacuated fin preparation to demolish it.

He considered the demolitions as a “war crime,” saying it affects more than 100 apartments in the first stage, and it may later affect 225 other apartments but that no decision has been made regarding them so far.

Assaf said the Israeli military order that allows demolition of Palestinian buildings on both sides of the separation barrier, which he described as “unjust,” violates the agreements signed with the Palestinians as well as the Geneva Convention calling for international protection of citizens under occupation.

He pointed out that the demolitions aim to create a buffer zone to separate Jerusalem from Bethlehem and the rest of the West Bank. He said Palestinians have legally built in Wadi al-Hummus area of Sur Baher, which is under the control of the Palestinian Authority and classified according to the Oslo accords as Area A.

For his part, Governor of Bethlehem Kamel Hamid told WAFA that “what we are seeing today is not only demolitions, but a clear reoccupation of Area A as classified according to the Oslo accords."

He pointed out that what is happening between Jerusalem and Bethlehem is a clear blow to all international conventions and human rights, urging the international community to act before it is too late, “because Palestinians may lose their patience in light of all these heinous crimes intended to forcibly displace them from their homes.”

M.K.