Israeli occupation authorities on Saturday forced Jerusalemite resident Ahmad Hamed Bkerat to carry out the demolition of part of his own home in the town of Sur Baher, in the southeastern outskirts of occupied Jerusalem, in the West Bank.
The Jerusalem Governorate said that Bkerat began demolishing an 80‑square‑meter extension of his house after the occupation municipality issued a demolition order last Sunday, giving him ten days to execute it.
He proceeded with self-demolition to avoid the exorbitant costs, additional fines, and potential imprisonment imposed by the occupation municipality and police when the city’s crews carry out the demolition themselves.
According to the Governorate, the targeted section was built nearly ten years ago and serves as the living space for Bkerat and his wife.
Despite paying more than $10,000 in fines to the occupation municipality and pursuing the required licensing procedures, the authorities insisted on enforcing the demolition order.
The forced demolition took place during a period when the family was meant to be observing Eid al‑Fitr, but the occupation’s restrictions and orders compelled Bkerat to tear down his own home to avoid further financial penalties
The Jerusalem municipality consistently refuses to issue construction licenses to Palestinian residents, then uses the absence of permits as grounds for demolition.
These actions violate international law and fundamental human rights, including the right to housing. They form part of a calculated strategy to forcibly displace Palestinians from the city and reshape its demographic landscape in favor of settler expansion.
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, which prohibit the destruction of civilian property and classify pillage as a war crime.
