Ramallah- UN statistics reveal thousands of displaced Palestinians and hundreds of thousands affected by the escalation of the Israeli demolition policy of Palestinian buildings and facilities in the West Bank since the start of the aggression against Gaza on October 7, 2023.
According to data from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), seen by an Tel Aviv Tribune Net correspondent, the Israeli occupation authorities demolished 1,787 Palestinian facilities between October 7, 2023 and October 15, 2024, including 800 inhabited homes.
The demolition operations led to the displacement of 4,498 Palestinians, in addition to the damage to about 531,593 others as a result of the demolition of their homes or commercial, industrial, and agricultural facilities.
Remarkable escalation
The cities of Jenin and Tulkarm lead the West Bank governorates in terms of the number of displaced people as a result of the continuous incursions, demolition and bulldozing operations. The displacement of 1,846 citizens was recorded in the city of Tulkarm and its two camps, as a result of the demolition of 313 inhabited homes, and 974 citizens in the city of Jenin and its camp, as a result of the demolition of 147 inhabited homes.
Regarding the details of the demolition, OCHA data indicate that 1,191 facilities were demolished under the pretext of building “without permits” from the occupying authorities, 537 facilities were demolished during military operations, and 43 homes and facilities were demolished as part of the collective punishment policy, which often means demolishing the homes of relatives of those who carried out operations against the occupation.
The scale of the escalation in demolitions becomes clear by going back to a corresponding previous period. The period between October 7, 2022 and October 15, 2023 witnessed the demolition of 1,020 facilities, the displacement of 1,396 Palestinians, and the damage of another 72,917 Palestinians, according to the same source.
According to the assessment of the political level in Palestine, the occupation authorities see an opportunity to establish facts on the ground, especially in areas classified as “C” and “B,” and therefore expedite decisions related to demolition.
The Oslo Accords classified the West Bank lands into 3 categories: Area “C”, which constitutes 61% and is subject to complete Israeli control, Area “B”, which is subject to Palestinian civil and Israeli security control, and Area “A”, which remained under complete Palestinian control until the invasion of the West Bank in 2002.
Wasel Abu Youssef, a member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, told Tel Aviv Tribune Net that one of the most important strategic goals of the war of extermination that has been going on for nearly a year is “the displacement of the Palestinian people.”
But he added, “The Palestinian people have thwarted this goal by remaining steadfast and refusing to emigrate, especially from Gaza to Egypt and from the West Bank to Jordan and other places.”
Imposing facts
The leader of the Liberation Organization believes that Israeli efforts are continuing in light of the war of extermination and continue demolishing homes, displacing citizens, and deporting Bedouin communities, “in an attempt to impose facts on the ground and displace our Palestinian people, in the belief of the occupation that it may succeed in achieving this.”
He adds, “Every ongoing war that the occupation is carrying out against the Palestinian people is the result of two issues: unlimited American partnership, support and support, and also – unfortunately – the inability of the international community to stop the criminal war of aggression and not prosecute the occupation and impose sanctions on it for its escalating crimes against the Palestinian people.”
Likewise, the occupation’s feeling that it had a green light to continue its crimes and that it was protected from accountability for its crimes made it move forward towards escalating its aggressive, criminal war against the Palestinian people, according to Abu Youssef.
Regarding the role of the political level and the Palestinian Authority towards the displaced and affected people, Abu Youssef said that reparation of damages requires great capabilities, adding that “the government is trying to keep up with everything that would strengthen the steadfastness of citizens and compensate them, but what is primarily required is concerted efforts to stop the war of extermination to which the Palestinian people are exposed.” “.
By 43% compared to last year… An unprecedented increase in the pace of demolition of Palestinian homes in the West Bank by the Israeli occupation forces since the beginning of this year, which led to the displacement of hundreds of Palestinians | Report: Montaser Nassar #News #Gaza_War pic.twitter.com/YnkIERghx0
– Tel Aviv Tribune Channel (@AJArabic) July 27, 2024
Speeding up demolition procedures
In turn, Abdullah Abu Rahma, the public action official in the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, says that the attacks by settlers and the occupation army in Area C alone caused the death of 19 citizens in the year of war and the displacement of 28 communities inhabited by 1,636 citizens.
He added that the residents of these communities left by force of arms despite their success in surviving and holding out for years. “Over the years, the occupation has not succeeded in displacing a single Palestinian citizen through a policy of demolition. They were demolishing homes and facilities in the morning and within hours. We, in cooperation with other institutions, provide the needs, alternatives, and steadfastness of their owners, such as schools, solar cells, health insurance, and others.”
But he said that the situation changed after October 7, 2023, as “the use of force and weapons became common, and the threat: either you leave or you die, with the policy of giving residents hours. On the other hand, the Palestinian citizen does not have the means of protection from the settlers’ arsenal of weapons.” Even the solidarity activists who were supporting them became threatened and were beaten.”
He pointed out that the residents of the displaced communities took refuge in the area classified as “B” in the vicinity of the villages and towns that are more fortunate in terms of safety and freedom of movement.
The Israeli occupation authorities forced Jerusalemite Ibrahim Al-Julani to demolish a large part of his house, located in the town of Al-Tur in occupied Jerusalem, where he and his family of 4 people are sheltered, under the pretext of building without a permit.
It is noteworthy that the occupation authorities deprive Jerusalemites of building permits, and also impose heavy fines if… pic.twitter.com/mqOmqIDQk2– Tel Aviv Tribune Net | Jerusalem (@Aljazeeraquds) September 27, 2024
Government decision
He pointed out that the Authority used to receive complaints from citizens and the demolition notices they received and undertake legal procedures to delay demolition for several years, but the current Israeli government took decisions that would carry out demolition operations within a short time, without giving an opportunity to object to the legal authorities.
He added, “The occupation refuses to grant citizens building permits, and when they build, it demolishes the building. The goal is clear; they do not want any Palestinian presence in Area C. They aim to displace the Palestinians, deport them from their communities, and gather them in city centers and villages.”
On the other hand, Abu Rahma referred to the facilities granted to settlers, the approval of a large number of structural plans, and the approvals of tens of thousands of settlement units since the beginning of this year, in addition to the legitimization and spread of settlement outposts, and the increase in the areas under their control.
According to data from the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics published at the beginning of this October, 81% of families in the West Bank live in homes owned by a family member residing there, and the percentage of families who live in rented homes in the West Bank is estimated at about 8%, while less 1% of families live in other housing, such as a separate room or a tent.