WEST BANK, (Palestine Foundation Information Center), Israeli occupation forces (IOF) notified Palestinian families to halt construction and evacuate five homes in various areas of the West Bank on Monday, and bulldozed agricultural land as part of a series of attacks targeting the Palestinian presence.
Local sources reported that the IOF delivered stop-work orders for four homes in the village of Al-Asakra, east of Bethlehem, on the pretext of lacking the required permits.
In the same context, Palestinian citizen Nidal Hzaibi said that occupation authorities notified him of the demolition of a wedding hall and a park he owns, built on an area of four dunums, despite being licensed by the Ministry of Local Government and located in Area “B” of the village of Al-Khas, east of Bethlehem.
Hzaibi explained that the occupation authorities gave him seven days to carry out the demolition order, under the claim of “construction without a permit.”
In the northern West Bank, local sources said the IOF deployed military vehicles, engineering equipment, bulldozers, and road-paving machinery around the vicinity of Jenin refugee camp, and notified families living in the Al-Zahraa building adjacent to the camp to evacuate their homes in preparation for road-paving works in the area.
The IOF has, meanwhile, continued its aggression against the city of Jenin and its refugee camp since January 21. Official statements by the Jenin Municipality indicate that occupation forces have demolished about 40% of Jenin camp, and continue to carve new roads inside it, demolish buildings, and carry out wide-scale changes to its geographical features.
During last November, the IOF carried out 27 demolition and bulldozing operations targeting Palestinian structures in Jerusalem, including 21 operations executed by occupation municipality machinery, five self-demolitions, and one land-leveling operation of Jerusalemite land.
According to the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, occupation authorities issued 556 demolition notices during the first half of the current year targeting Palestinian homes and structures, including 322 inhabited homes and 151 agricultural facilities, as part of a policy aimed at expanding settlement activity and imposing a new reality on the ground.
In a related development, IOF bulldozed agricultural lands in the “Al-Surooj” area between the towns of As-Seela Al-Harithiya and Al-Yamoun, west of Jenin.
The mayor of As-Seela Al-Harithiya, Samir Ziyoud, confirmed that the targeted land area is estimated at between 400 and 450 dunums, planted with olive trees for more than 30 years, and classified by the occupation authorities as “state land.”
