The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) strongly condemns the Israeli Occupation Forces’ (IOF) escalating policy of house demolitions in the West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem. This policy has forcibly displaced thousands of Palestinians, including women and children, leaving them homeless under devastating humanitarian conditions and amid the cold weather. These crimes are part of a collective punishment policy and ethnic cleansing aimed at erasing the Palestinian presence in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt).
Over the past few days, IOF has escalated demolitions that have targeted tens of houses and facilities, especially in Nablus, occupied East Jerusalem, and Hebron, as well as northern West bank that has been under unabated widescale military assault for 46 days. During this brutal assault, IOF have demolished hundreds of houses and forcibly displaced more than 40 thousand Palestinians, particularly in Jenin, Tulkarm, and Nur Shams refugee camps.
The latest crimes of demolition were on Thursday, 06 March 2025, as the IOF demolished six houses, nine barracks, nine water tanks, three mobile bathrooms, and five animal barns in Kherbet Tana, east of Aqraba village, south of Nablus. As a result, 8 families of 56 members, including 9 women and 28 children, were forcibly displaced, under the pretext of illegal construction in Area “C”.
On the same day, during the 45th day of their ground assault that has begun on 21 January 2025, the IOF demolished nine houses in Jenin refugee camp, west of the West Bank, as part of their collective punishment policy targeting the families of Palestinian armed group members.
On Wednesday, 05 March 2025, as part of their ground assault launched on 27 January 2025 and ongoing for 40 days, the IOF demolished 16 houses in Nur Shams refugee camp, east of Tulkarm.
On the same day, as part of the Israeli authorities’ collective punishment policy, the IOF detonated the house of Hayil ‘Issa Daif Allah (58), a detainee in Israeli prisons, in Rafat village, north of occupied East Jerusalem. It is worth noting that the IOF arrested Daif Allah after shooting him near the “Givat Asaf” settlement, east of Ramallah, on 11 September 2024, under the pretext of carrying out a run-over attack.
On 03 March, the IOF demolished a 4-dunum farm that included several barracks, barns, and livestock and animal stables, in addition to two dwellings, each built on an area of 100 square meters, in Issawiya village, northeast of occupied East Jerusalem. The demolition was carried out under the pretext of unlicensed construction near the “Anatot” settlement.
On 04 March, the Israeli authorities demolished a 120-sqm house in Beit Hanina village, north of occupied East Jerusalem, under the pretext of unlicensed construction, rendering a family of 6 members homeless.
On the same day, as part of their systematic policy aimed at destroying the Palestinian economic infrastructure and imposing further restrictions on Palestinians, the IOF demolished seven commercial facilities in the al-Ramadeen area, south of Hebron, under the pretext of illegal construction in Area “C.”
Since the beginning of the year, IOF and settlers have demolished 426 facilities, including 310 houses. Among them, 18 houses have been self-demolished by their owners upon IOF’s orders in occupied East Jerusalem while 54 others have been demolished under the pretext of no construction licenses. Moreover, IOF have demolished 6 houses for Palestinian detainees held in Israeli prisons, as part of Israel’s collective punishment policy against persons accused of carrying out attacks. Among those houses, 229 were demolished by the IOF during their ongoing assault on Jenin refugee camp, while 39 others in Nur Shams refugee camp in Tulkarm.
Meanwhile, the Israeli occupation authorities continue their settlement expansion by building thousands of new settlement units and seizing Palestinian-owned lands for settlers’ benefit. This is part of clear plans to impose new demographic dynamics on the ground to pave the way for the gradual annexation of the West Bank amid the international community’s silence and even complicity of some of its influential actors.
PCHR condemns Israel’s policy of house and facility demolitions in the West Bank, forced displacement of its residents and land appropriation. PCHR has monitored that Israel has intensified its aggression across the West Bank following the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip aimed at creating a new reality in the West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem.
PCHR emphasizes that this policy of house demolitions and forced displacement amounts to war crimes under the Fourth Geneva Convention which prohibits collective punishment and unlawful destruction of property owned by a population under occupation. Furthermore, the accelerating settlement expansion constitutes a blatant violation of UN Security Council Resolution 2334, which affirms the illegality of Israeli settlements and calls for their immediate halt.
PCHR recalls the advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in July 2024, which has concluded the illegality of Israel’s occupation in the Gaza Strip and West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem. By this, Israel must end its illegal presence as soon as possible, end immediately its settlement activities and evacuate all settlers from the occupied Palestinian territory.
PCHR reaffirms the Palestinians’ right to remain on their land and rejects Israel’s attempts to impose new realities by force. PCHR also calls on the international community to take effective and immediate action to end the IOF’s ongoing crimes and hold them accountable for their grave violations of human rights and international humanitarian law.
