The Supreme Israeli Court rejected on Sunday a petition demanding the abolition of an Israeli order to demolish two schools and 32 residential facilities in Masafer Yatta region, south of AlKhalil, in the southern occupied West Bank.

Nedal Younes, the head of the Masafer Yatta village council, told WAFA news agency that the court rejected a petition submitted by residents of four communities in Masafer Yatta against the imminent Israeli demolition of two schools and about 32 shacks in Khirbet Al Fakheit and Jinba, two of about 20 hamlets forming the Masafer Yatta area.

He said the court’s order gives the Israeli army a green light to go ahead with the demolition of Palestinian structures and residential facilities in the area.

On May 4, the Israeli High Court gave the Israeli army the green light to demolish and displace over 1000 Palestinians living in some eight communities in Masafer Yatta in order to turn the area into a training and a firing zone.

The decision promoted strong local and international condemnation.

Israel has been gradually demolishing homes and displacing families in several Masafer Yatta communities over the past few weeks as part of a large-scale ethnic cleansing plan.