Middle East Monitor / September 10, 2020
In light of the increasing demolition of Palestinian homes in occupied Jerusalem, a number of Palestinian researchers stressed yesterday that Israel is going ahead in its annexation plans, Safa news agency reported.
During a conference organised by Jerusalem Legal Aid and Human Rights Center (JLAC), researchers cited the Israeli project of building the American Street which would connect illegal settlement blocs and connect the US embassy with occupied East Jerusalem.
The researchers stated that up to 400 Palestinian homes would be demolished when the roads are ready, stressing that homes which are not along the route of the roads are also slated for demolition.
According to the researchers, the Israeli occupation authorities claim security reasons for building this road in order to prevent Palestinian homeowners from appealing to the Israeli courts against the demolition of their properties.
Palestinian Authority (PA) Minister of Jerusalem Affairs Fadi al-Hadmi called for the international community to reject the Israeli policy of demolishing Palestinian homes.
During the conference, he hailed the EU’s statement which called for Israel to stop its policy of demolishing Palestinian homes and stressed that this is a violation of international law.
According to the findings, 400 Palestinians homes in Jabal al-Mukaber alone in occupied Jerusalem are expected to receive demolition orders within the next year as the Israeli authorities are expected to approve the American Street very soon.
They added that the systematic home demolition policy in the occupied holy city aims to force Palestinian residents to leave their homes in order to change the demographic composition of the city.
