BETHLEHEM, Tuesday, August 06, 2019 (WAFA) – Israeli forces today demolished four structures besides to a house under construction in Bir Oneh village in Beit Jala city, west of Bethlehem.

Head of the Bethlehem Office of the Anti-Wall and Settlement Committee Hassan Breija said that Israeli forces stormed and cordoned off the village, before a bulldozer demolished four barns and the foundations of a house under construction purportedly for being without a license.

The owners of the barns and the house under construction were identified as Mohammad Zreineh and Daoud Ghneim respectively.

Zreineh’s barns were demolished twice although he has a title deed which proves he is the owner of the plot of land on which the barns are built.

Using the pretext of illegal building, Israel demolishes houses on a regular basis to restrict Palestinian expansion in occupied Jerusalem.

At the same time, the municipality and government build tens of thousands of housing units in illegal settlements in East Jerusalem for Jews with a goal to offset the demographic balance in favor of the Jewish settlers in the occupied city.

Although Palestinians in East Jerusalem, a part of the internationally recognized Palestinian Territory that has been subject to Israeli military occupation since 1967, they are denied their citizenship rights and are instead classified only as "residents" whose permits can be revoked if they move away from the city for more than a few years.

They are also discriminated against in all aspects of life including housing, employment and services, and are unable to access services in the West Bank due to the construction of Israel‘s separation wall.

K.F.