Despite Heavy Costs, Palestinians in Occupied East Jerusalem Decide not to Self-Demolish Their Homes

Despite Heavy Costs, Palestinians in Occupied East Jerusalem Decide not to Self-Demolish Their Homes

Israeli excavators demolish a Palestinian building in Issawiya, East Jerusalem on 15 August 2019 [Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu Agency]

Palestinian residents of occupied East Jerusalem have decided not to tear down their homes with their own hands in defiance of demolition orders issued by the Israeli municipality of West Jerusalem under the pretext of construction without permit, despite the heavy costs, reported Wafa news agency.

In a public meeting for Palestinian residents of Silwan neighborhood held last week, the residents decided to stop yielding to pressure from the Israeli municipality, whom they accuse of discriminating against the non-Jewish residents of the city, and demolish their own homes under the threat that they will be heavily fined and forced to pay exorbitant costs if the municipality carries out the demolition.

The families of Silwan held a meeting to discuss “the rabid and systematic offensive by the occupation municipality to displace families through house demolitions and fining,” said the Silwan families in a statement after their meeting.

“Demolishing houses with their bulldozers or self-demolition has become one of the weapons they use to fight us,” they added, calling on people not to self-demolish their homes and to stand by those who have their homes demolished and help them remain steadfast in their city.

The Abdo family from Jabal al-Mukabber has decided not demolish their own house, defying Israeli threats.

“The demolition of houses is a crime that our family members cannot commit against themselves, and if the occupiers insist on doing it, then let them do it and let them be exposed to the whole world so that they will not have the satisfaction that the demolition is done by the residents,” said the Abdo family.

Reports also said that Ghaleb Abbasi, from Silwan, tore down the foundation for a house he was building after he got a threatening demolition order from the municipality.

According to Khaled Abu Tayeh, member of Silwan Land Defense Committee, Abbasi had built the 160-square-meter foundation eight years ago in the hope to get a permit to continue construction of his house. But, instead, he received a demolition order and was forced to tear it apart to avoid paying high fees and costs.

Israel issued 650 demolition orders against Palestinian homes and structures in East Jerusalem this year.

Palestinians in the city say they are forced to build without permit because getting one is almost impossible from a racist municipality that is ready to build thousands of housing units for Jews and not a single house for the Palestinians.

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