Demolitions in the Jerusalem area, September 2022: Authorities demolish 33 structures; 33 people, including 15 minors, lose their homes

On Jerusalem Municipality, Civil Administration and Ministry of Interior orders, 33 structures were demolished throughout September 2022 in East Jerusalem and in adjacent areas lying within the al-Quds District of the Palestinian Authority.

Six of the structures were residential and four of them were demolished by their own owners on the instruction of the authorities. Four of the homes were occupied, and the demolition left 26 people, including 11 minors, homeless. Two more homes were still under construction. One was to house a family of seven, including four minors, and the other was set to serve as the home of newlyweds.

Parts of the home of a family of eight, including one minor, were demolished by the owners following an order issued by the Jerusalem Municipality.

In addition to all these, 27 non-residential buildings were demolished, including 12 commercial properties that supplied incomes for 13 families.

Demolition details:

On Friday, 2 September 2022, a resident of al-’Esawiyah in East Jerusalem was forced to demolish a structure still under construction designed to house his family of seven, including four minors, following an order issued by the Municipality.

That same day, a resident of Ras al-’Amud in East Jerusalem was forced to demolish his home, following an order issued by the Jerusalem Municipality. The demolition left his family of five homeless.

On Sunday, 4 September 2022, a resident of al-’Esawiya in East Jerusalem was forced to demolish a livestock enclosure that supported his family of seven, including two minors, following an order issued by the Municipality.

On Tuesday, 6 September 2022, at around 9:00 A.M., Jerusalem Municipality personnel arrived with Border Police officers and a digger at the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabal al-Mukabber. The forces demolished an agricultural structure and a fence owend by a family of nine, including one minor.

On Wednesday, 7 September 2022, at around 4:00 A.M., Civil Administration personnel arrived with a military escort and a bulldozer at the town of 'Anata in al-Quds District. The forces demolished four commercial warehouses, two agricultural structures, a car wash, a livestock enclosure, a refrigeration room, a refrigeration container and a fence. The structures supported the livelihoods of 12 families.

On Thursday, 8 September 2022, a resident of the neighborhood of Wadi Qadum in East Jerusalem was forced to demolish his home, which was still under construction, following an order issued by the Municipality. He was planning to move into the home after his wedding.

The same day, at around 6:00 A.M., Jerusalem Municipality personnel arrived with Border Police officers and a bulldozer at the East Jerusalem neighborhood of ‘Ein al-Jawizeh in the village of al-Walajah, southwest of Jerusalem. The forces demolished 400 meters’ worth of terraces, a shipping container used for agricultural purposes, and a fence. They also uprooted 120 trees and grapevines belonging to a family of seven, including five minors. The demolition was carried out on the orders of the Ministry of Interior.

On Sunday, 11 September 2022, a resident of Ras al-’Amud in East Jerusalem was forced to demolish her own home following an order issued by the Municiality. The demolition left her family of four, including three minors, homeless.

On Tuesday, 13 September 2022, at around 8:00 A.M., Civil Administration personnel arrived with a military escort and a bulldozer at the town of Jaba’, al-Quds District, northeast of Jerusalem. The forces demolished a shipping container used as a car repair shop and a shed used as the shop’s break room. They also destroyed five water tanks. The demolished structures supported the livelihood of a family of ten.

On Monday, 19 September 2022, at around 6:00 A.M., Civil Administration personnel arrived with a military escort and a bulldozer at the community of Abu Shushah near the town of Jaba’ in al-Quds District. The forces demolished two shacks that were home to two families with a total of 17 members, including eight minors, leaving them homeless. The forces also demolished three livestock enclosures, damaged three water tanks and confiscated four tents that had not been pitched yet.

On Sunday, 25 September 2022, a resident of the Wadi al-Joz neighborhood in East Jerusalem was forced to demolish a room and kitchen he had added to the home where his family of eight, including one minor, lives, following an order issued by the Municipality.