The Jerusalem Governorate reported Wednesday that Israeli authorities have demolished 623 Palestinian structures in the occupied Palestinian capital, Jerusalem, in the West Bank, since the beginning of the genocide in Gaza on October 7, 2023.
The demolitions have affected residential homes, some inhabited for decades and others still under construction, as well as commercial and economic establishments that serve as vital sources of income for dozens of Jerusalemite families.
In its statement, the governorate condemned what it described as Israel’s continued implementation of discriminatory policies against Palestinians in the area.
It cited the recent demolition of a home in the town of Hizma, northeast of occupied Jerusalem, carried out under heavy military deployment, as part of a broader campaign aimed at erasing Palestinian presence in the city.
The statement also denounced the growing use of “self-demolition” tactics, in which Palestinians are forced to destroy their own homes under threat of heavy fines, imprisonment, or both.
This, the governorate said, reflects a deliberate policy to mentally and financially exhaust residents, coercing them into leaving the city.
Despite years of legal battles and the payment of hefty fines, often exceeding the cost of construction, many affected families have been denied building permits or subjected to impossible conditions for approval.
The statement noted that permit approval rates for Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem remain below 2%, with construction allowed on only 13% of the city’s area.
The governorate stressed that these demolitions cannot be viewed in isolation from Israel’s broader strategy to alter the city’s demographic makeup and diminish its Palestinian identity.
This includes land confiscations, restricted planning rights, and the expansion of illegal colonies, all in violation of international humanitarian law, United Nations resolutions, and the Geneva Conventions, which recognize East Jerusalem as occupied Palestinian territory.
It concluded by labeling the demolitions a form of forced displacement that amounts to a war crime, demanding immediate and effective international action to hold Israel accountable.
The governorate called on international bodies, including the International Criminal Court, the Human Rights Council, and UN special rapporteurs, to intervene and safeguard the rights of Palestinians in Jerusalem, ensuring their dignity and rightful place in their city, on their land, and among their communities.
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 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”.
