Israeli occupation authorities delivered demolition notices to seven inhabited Palestinian homes in the eastern neighborhood of the village of Qalandia, north of occupied Jerusalem in the West Bank, ordering residents to evacuate and demolish their properties within 21 days.
The orders were issued under the pretext of building without Israeli permits, even though the targeted homes have stood for decades and shelter multiple families.
Residents said Israeli municipal crews, accompanied by soldiers, photographed the structures and marked them before handing the written notices directly to the occupants.
Families in Qalandia stressed that they have repeatedly attempted to obtain building permits, but Israeli authorities systematically refuse Palestinian applications in and around occupied Jerusalem.
This refusal is part of a long‑standing policy that severely restricts Palestinian urban growth while facilitating the expansion of Israeli colonies.
Palestinian residents face layers of structural barriers, including zoning classifications that designate large areas as “green zones,” “open spaces,” or “unplanned areas,” where Palestinians are effectively barred from building.
Even in neighborhoods that have existed for generations, Israeli authorities rarely approve Palestinian construction plans, leaving families with no legal avenue to expand or repair their homes.
These restrictions are compounded by high permit fees, lengthy bureaucratic procedures, and near‑automatic rejections.
As a result, thousands of Palestinian homes in and around occupied Jerusalem are built without Israeli‑issued permits—not because families avoid the process, but because of systematic colonialist policies.
Israeli authorities then use the absence of permits as grounds for demolition orders, forcing families into cycles of displacement, financial loss, and prolonged instability.
The new demolition notices in Qalandia add to a growing number of threatened homes in the area, heightening fears of further displacement as Israeli authorities continue to target long‑established Palestinian neighborhoods.
While Israel continues to build and expand its illegal colonies, Palestinian communities and towns in occupied Jerusalem and various areas in the occupied West Bank continue to be denied the right to build homes and property under various allegations meant to prevent the expansion of Palestinian towns and neighborhoods.
All of Israel’s colonies in the occupied West Bank, including those in and around occupied East Jerusalem, are illegal under International Law, the Fourth Geneva Convention in addition to various United Nations and Security Council resolutions. They also constitute war crimes under International Law.
Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention prohibits collective punishment and acts of terror against civilian populations.
Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention states: “The Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.” It also prohibits the “individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory”.
Articles 53 and 147, prohibit the destruction of civilian property and classify pillage as a war crime.
