40 villagers homeless
Israeli bulldozers demolish houses in the West Bank
27.06.2024, 01:01 a.m.
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According to residents, Israeli troops in the south of the West Bank are entering a Bedouin settlement and demolishing several houses. The reason for this is apparently a military order.
According to residents, Israeli troops have demolished several houses in a Bedouin settlement in the occupied West Bank. Five families, about 40 of the 200 villagers, are now homeless, including a prominent Palestinian artist and about 30 children.
Israeli bulldozers and military vehicles entered Umm al-Khair in the south of the West Bank early Wednesday morning and destroyed at least seven houses, Palestinian villagers told the AP news agency. They then withdrew. The soldiers later returned and arrested one resident. Amateur footage from the village shows bulldozers hitting the walls of houses while residents watch. Israeli soldiers keep Palestinians and Israeli activists away from the demolition zone.
Area now a military exclusion zone?
Cogat, the Israeli military agency responsible for civil affairs in the West Bank, said the demolished buildings were built illegally and without permits. Israel’s highest court ruled that the structures could be removed. Palestinians in these areas have long pointed out that it is virtually impossible to obtain building permits from the Israeli authorities.
Also affected by the demolition was the house of Eid Suleman, an activist and artist whose works were exhibited alongside the well-known Chinese exile artist Ai Weiwei. The soldiers gave his family only 30 minutes to remove their belongings from the house, Suleman said.
A military order handed out to residents said part of the village had been declared a military exclusion zone. The order called the area “Carmel Farms,” echoing the name of an adjacent fenced-off Israeli settlement.
“On one side of the fence, there are people with rights,” said Guy Butavia, an Israeli activist who has joined the villagers. On the other side, he said, “they have no rights. They cannot live on their own private land.”