18.11.04

 
   B'Tselem Reveals Unprecedented Scale of House Demolitions  


B'Tselem has just released a new report entitled "Through No Fault of Their Own" revealing that the number of houses demolished as a punitive measure in the Occupied Territories is twice as large as Israeli officials claim. Ostensibly, the demolitions are aimed at Palestinians who carried out, or were suspected of carrying out, attacks against Israelis. In practice, the primary victims are family members who are not suspected of any wrongdoing.

Since the beginning of the al-Aqsa intifada, the IDF has demolished 628 housing units, which were home to 3,983 persons, for the purpose of punishment. There were 333 Palestinians who committed, or were suspected of committing, the attacks that led to the demolition of these houses. Thus, for every Palestinian assailant, twelve innocent Palestinians lost their home. Furthermore, 295 of the demolished houses (about 50% of the total), home to 1,286 Palestinians, were never inhabited by the Palestinian assailants, but rather were near the houses in which the assailants and alleged assailants lived. In statements filed with the High Court of Justice, the state contended that as a rule, prior notice of demolition is provided to occupants of the house scheduled for demolition. However, B'Tselem's figures indicate that prior warning was given in less than three percent of the cases. Israel's policy of punitive house demolitions flagrantly breaches international humanitarian law, and therefore constitutes a war crime. Since the beginning of the intifada, the High Court, with its tortuous legal reasoning, has refused to provide judicial review, and has given rubber-stamp approval of Israel's illegal policy.

B'Tselem demands that the government of Israel cease punitive house demolitions and compensate families whose homes were demolished.

 
A Palestinian boy removes possessions from the ruins of his home in Bethlehem, which the IDF blew up on 15 June 2004. Photo: Reuters
A Palestinian boy removes possessions from the ruins of his home in Bethlehem, which the IDF blew up on 15 June 2004. Photo: Reuters

   
Report Summary
Full Report (Word 97)
Full Report (RTF)
 
   B'Tselem Video - Not Only for Punishment  


Most of the house demolitions carried out by Israel in the Occupied Territories are not punitive measures. During the intifada, Israel demolished an additional 2,540 houses for alleged “military need,” and 929 houses were demolished on the grounds that they were built without a permit. In all, Israel has demolished a total of more than 4,100 homes over the past four years, leaving at least 28,000 Palestinians homeless.

Today B'Tselem is releasing a short video on this topic. Click on "Play video" to the right to view the video.

 
Play video B’Tselem’s video on demolitions
B'Tselem's video on demolitions.

Play video
 
   Now's the Time to Act  


Yesterday, demolition orders were issued for five apartments, home to 29 people, in the village of Beit Liqya northwest of Jerusalem. The homes belong to the families of three men accused of involvement in several attacks against Israelis. The families have been given forty-eight hours to appeal the demolition, and are represented by HaMoked.

Write Minister of Defense Shaul Mofaz (fax: 972-3-6976219, email: sar@mod.gov.il), and add your voice to those opposing punitive house demolitions.

 
Time to Act


E-mail Shaul Mofaz
 
   “Ten minutes to take whatever you want from the apartment”  


In the early hours of 27 February 2004, IDF forces demolished the apartment in which Hassan Abu Sha'ira had lived in the al-‘Aza refugee camp, in the Bethlehem District. In the process of the demolition they also caused severe damage to other apartments in the building. The objective of the demolition was to punish Abu Sha'ira's family for his killing of a General Security Service officer, Yehuda Edri, three years earlier. During the incident, soldiers who were protecting Edri shot and killed Abu Sha'ira.

At the time it was demolished, the apartment was home to Abu Sha'ira's widow and her three children. The soldiers came in the middle of the night, without any prior warning, and made all of the occupants leave the building. In her testimony to B'Tselem, the widow, ‘Itaf Abu Sha'ira, described what happened next: “One of the soldiers asked which one of us was the wife of Hassan Abu Sha'ira. I told him that I was. He replied: 'We are going to blow up your apartment.' I should point out that the Israeli forces had not told us anything about a decision relating to our house. I asked him why, and he replied: 'Because of what your husband did.' I asked him to show me an official document ordering the demolition of our apartment. He said that the Israeli military court had made a decision, and that they were going to demolish the apartment. I asked to see the decision, but he didn't show me anything.

The officer told me: 'I am giving you ten minutes to take whatever you want out of the apartment...' I managed to take only the documents proving that I own the apartment, and my gold [jewelry]. We were in shock, and did not manage to take anything else...”

The IDF completely destroyed Abu Sha'ira's apartment and its contents. The other apartments it the building were severely damaged. An engineer from the Palestinian General Construction Office examined the building and decided the entire building was too dangerous to be inhabited.

Abu Sha'ira described her family's current situation: “My children and I now live in a rented apartment in the refugee camp. We do not have any furniture. Basically, we live on the floor. We live like refugees and our situation is very bad. After the soldiers demolished the apartment, they told us it was forbidden to rebuild it, and that if we did, they would come back and demolish it again.”

 
House Demolitions in Rafah
A family removes their possessions from the ruins of their home in Gaza city, which was demolished by the IDF. Photo: Reuters

   
The full testimony
Testimony of Fakhri 'Aarda
Testimony of Zakaria al-'Aaraj
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