Israeli troops started to demolish a Palestinian owned house located in Beit Hanina neighborhood in Jerusalem city on Monday at dawn.
The house, which belongs to the Abu Ayisha family, consists of five apartments and houses five families.
The Israeli army announced plans to demolish the house on Sunday. Israeli troops stormed the area and surrounded the Palestinian neighborhood on Monday at dawn, reported eyewitnesses. Shortly after, the troops attacked the families and their Palestinian and international supporters who arrived on Sunday night to show solidarity, the witnesses added.
As army bulldozers arrived, Israeli troops attacked the families and their supporters and forced them out of the home. At least 10 civilians were injured; among them Hatem Abed Al Qader, the Palestinian Prime Minister's Advisor for Jerusalem affairs. Abed Al Qader, informed the media that the Israeli forces did not allow ambulances and medical teams to evacuate the injured, leaving them to be taken to the hospital by civilian cars.
The Israeli army stated that the complex was built without permission. Since Israel occupied Jerusalem in 1967 it has rarely given its Palestinian residents any form of documentation or permits to build homes on the land they already own.
The bulldozers were stopped by the families and their supporters, reported eyewitnesses. They expect the Israeli army to bring in more troops to the location of the house to continue the demolition.
