Israel demolished record number of Palestinian structures in East Jerusalem last month: group
The demolitions included 16 homes and brought the year’s total to 93 structures, 53 of them residential.
The Israeli army demolished 33 Palestinian structures in the occupied East Jerusalem last month, a record number this year, an Israeli rights group has said.
The demolished buildings included 16 residential units and 17 non-residential structures, Ir Amim organisation said in a statement on Monday.
The demolitions brought the number of Palestinian buildings razed by Israel in the occupied city to 93, including 53 residential structures and 40 non-residential buildings, the group said.
Figures released by the Israeli group showed that 23 buildings were demolished in January, 15 in February, 14 in March, and 8 in April.
Israel widely uses the pretext of a lack of construction permits to demolish Palestinian homes, as only a small number of permits are issued for Palestinians in East Jerusalem annually, according to Israeli, Palestinian, and international human rights organisations.
In contrast, there has been a rising number of permits issued by Israeli authorities for the construction of settlements on the territory of East Jerusalem.
During the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where the Al Aqsa Mosque is located.
It illegally annexed the entire city in 1980, which was never recognised by the international community.