Government tears down homes of Palestinian citizens of Israel

Israeli bulldozers today demolished two Palestinian-owned buildings and a wall in Wadi Ara region, in northern Israel.

According to local sources, a large number of heavily armed Israeli forces raided the Wadi Ara region along with several bulldozers and began a demolition campaign against Palestinian-owned structures in the area.

Ahmad Milhem, chair of Anti-House Demolition Committee, said that Israeli bulldozers demolished one building that consisted of five residential apartments, one building and a wall which were under-construction,.

Milhem pointed out that the demolition was carried out under the pretext that it was built without the nearly-impossible to obtain Israeli building permits.

At least five Palestinian families have been affected by the demolition.

READ: Israel forces Palestinian to demolish his and his daughter’s homes 

Nearly all Palestinian applications for building permits are denied by the Israeli authorities, forcing communities to build illegally.

Israeli Palestinian rights group Adalah says that only 4.6 per cent of new homes built in Israel are in Palestinian towns and villages, even though Palestinians make up over 20 per cent of the population.

In 2015, the United Nations, as well as other members of the international community, verbally condemned Israel’s systematic destruction of Palestinian homes and declared the practice illegal and unfair.