RAMALLAH, Palestine, Dec 7 (NNN-MA’AN) – The honeymoon of Mos’ab al-Hamadin turned into a nightmare, after his home in the Wadi Abu Hindi community of eastern Jerusalem, was demolished.
“The Israeli army’s bulldozers destroyed our home on Wednesday,” said Mos’ab, siting next to the ruins of his home, which is located on an arid land.
Mos’ab and his elder brother, Mohammad, both got married 25 days ago.
“We were dreaming of a beautiful life and a stable family, but now we are homeless. They are trying to force us to leave,” said Mos’ab.
The Israeli municipality in Jerusalem demolished 165 houses east of the city, since the beginning of 2019, according to the Israeli Information Centre for Human Rights, in the Occupied Territories (B’Tselem).
Palestinians accuse Israel of taking measures to prevent the Palestinian communities from expanding and force those who prepare to settle down, to leave.
Wearing traditional Palestinian black-and-white Kufiya, or cap, Mos’ab and Mohammad’s father, in the Palestinian community in Abu Hindi Valley of Jerusalem, said, “the Israeli bulldozers started demolishing the houses without warning.”
“We were even prevented from resorting to legal procedures to stop the demolition,” Abu Mohammad al-Hamadin said. “A few days before the demolition, an Israeli crew came to the area and took photos of our house.”
“When we spoke to the lawyers, they told us that nothing could be challenged, because there was no notice of demolition or a warning given to the court.”
At present, some 65 Palestinian families live in the Wadi Abu Hindi community, complaining that, Israel bans them from building homes on their own land.
This community is similar to the nearby Palestinian community of Abu Nawar, where Abu Emad al-Jahalin, chief of the community, said that, many homes in Abu Nawar have been demolished recently, “under the pretext of not obtaining the necessary license.”
Karim Jubran, B’Tselem’s spokesman, said, the Israeli municipality of Jerusalem escalated its demolition.
The municipality also fined home owners and asked them to pay for the demolition. As a result, many Palestinian residents in Jerusalem chose to demolish their homes on their own, he said.
The Israeli demolition policies outraged the Palestinians, who consider East Jerusalem as the capital of the Palestinian state, while Israel considers the whole city as its eternal capital.
Palestinians who live in different communities in Jerusalem are deeply concerned that their homes will be demolished. The Israeli police declined to comment on the Palestinian accusations.
An Israeli police spokesman, speaking on condition of anonymity, said, “demolitions took place only for houses that are illegally constructed and are in a dangerous condition.”
He added that owners of the houses are notified of “the removal of illegal construction.”
Israel occupied East Jerusalem in 1967, and later annexed the Palestinian territory, a move that was never recognised by the international community.
U.S. President, Donald Trump, announced at the end of 2017, that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, and in May 2018, the U.S. Embassy in Israel was moved to the city.– NNN-MA’AN