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Image posted, OCHA
An image showing the location of the demolished area
The United Nations criticized Israel for carrying out what it described as the largest demolition of Palestinian homes in the occupied West Bank in a decade.
The United Nations said some 73 people, including 41 children, were left homeless after their homes were demolished in the Khirbet Homs settlement in the Jordan Valley.
But the Israeli army said the houses were built illegally.
The United Nations has described the Israeli actions as a “grave violation” of international law.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, 76 buildings, including houses, animal pens, toilets and solar panels, were destroyed by Israeli bulldozers on Tuesday night.
However, the Israeli authorities stated that the number of buildings is much lower and said they carried out a “legal demolition” operation that included seven tents and eight animal pens.
Images of the site after the demolition, released by the Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem, showed that the area was littered with debris, including metal objects, sheets and clothing.
“It is a great injustice,” Harb Abu al-Kabbash, a resident of the area, told the Israeli newspaper, “We did not know they were coming and we did not prepare.
The Israeli military authority responsible for civil affairs in the West Bank said in a statement that the destroyed buildings “were built illegally in the crossfire zone” or in a military training area.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said Khirbet Homsa, known as Humsa al-Baqi, was one of 38 cities located wholly or partially within Israel’s designated “fire zones” and constituting “some of the most vulnerable communities in the West Bank. “
Image posted, B’Tselem
The Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem published images from the scene of the incident after the demolitions.
He added that these demolitions represent “serious violations of the Fourth Geneva Convention” and are part of international law designed to protect the civilian population in the occupied territories.
Israel occupied the West Bank in the 1967 war, and according to subsequent agreements, the Palestinians enjoy limited self-rule in parts of the West Bank, while Israel controls the area generally.
Khirbet Hamsa is outside of Palestinian control.
Palestinian communities in Israeli-administered areas complain that trying to obtain building permits there is often ineffective.
