On Sunday evening, a Palestinian was forced to demolish his home in the az-Za’ayyem Palestinian town, east of the occupied capital, Jerusalem, in the West Bank, to avoid high fines and fees after an Israeli court denied his appeals.
Media sources said the Palestinian, Dirar Darwish, had to demolish his 100 square meter home, which housed him and his family of five.
The sources added that the Jerusalem City Council ordered the Palestinian to demolish his home within 24 hours or face excessive fines and fees in addition to the demolition costs if the city used its workers and equipment.
Last year, Israel demolished at least 110 Palestinian homes and forced 130 families to demolish their homes in Jerusalem.
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.”
