On Wednesday, Israeli occupation forces killed around 7,000 egg-laying hens and demolished a poultry shelter in the village of Um al-Rihan, west of Jenin, in the occupied West Bank’s northern part.
The village and the farm are located behind the illegal Israeli Annexation Wall, and the residents require permits to enter or leave the area.
Jamal Kamel Zeid, owner of the farm, informed WAFA Palestinian News & Info Agency that Israeli soldiers used an electric killing device to slaughter the four-month-old hens before a military bulldozer razed the 1,000-square-meter shelter.
Zaid added that his losses from this Israeli attack and violation exceed 500,000 shekels, adding that the farm is his family’s source of livelihood.
Majdi Zaid, head of the Um al-Rihan village council, confirmed that Israeli forces invaded the village with a military bulldozer, stormed the farm, and carried out the destruction and the killing of the hens.
In Bethlehem, Israeli occupation forces issued demolition orders targeting nine Palestinian homes—some inhabited, others under construction—in the village of Artas, south of the city in the occupied West Bank.
Early Wednesday morning, Israeli occupation forces launched a new round of demolitions targeting Bedouin communities in the town of Anata, east of occupied Jerusalem in the West Bank.
On Tuesday, Israeli occupation authorities forced two Palestinian families in occupied Jerusalem to carry out self-demolitions—one of a family home in Silwan, the other of a livestock shelter in al-‘Isawiya.
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.
