Israel frequently demolishes homes in East Jerusalem, but not usually in Ramadan [Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images]
Israeli forces have demolished homes in occupied East Jerusalem for the first time this Ramadan in a new escalation against Palestinian residents of the city.
A house belonging to the Al-Khatifi family was bulldozed in Beit Hanina, north of Jerusalem, on Tuesday, according to Palestinian news agency Wafa.
This came after the destruction of apartments and a farm in Issawiya, northeast of Jerusalem, on Monday, with Wafa reporting that the farm was demolished on the pretext that it was close to a nearby military site.
Jerusalem-based NGO Ir Amim said that the demolitions are the first on record for Ramadan, noting that Israeli authorities usually refrain from carrying out demolitions during the Muslim holy month over religious sensitivity.
Avi Tatarsky, a researcher at Ir Amim, said that “for the first time, Israel is violating its long-standing practice by carrying out home demolitions even during Ramadan – a sacred month for millions of Muslims worldwide.”
“This sets a dangerous precedent that further harms East Jerusalem residents, who are forced to build without permits due to Israel’s discriminatory planning policies.”
Ir Amim says that since the beginning of the year 46 structures have been demolished, describing it as a “trend that is only accelerating” from the record year for home demolitions in 2024.
As Israel continues to demolish Palestinian homes, the local planning and building committee in Jerusalem approved the construction of 1,000 housing units in East Jerusalem, according to Israeli public broadcaster Kan.
The plan comes amid Israel’s attempts to expand Jerusalem’s municipal boundaries, with Jerusalem deputy mayor Aryeh King sending a proposal to the government to incorporate illegal settlements in the West Bank into the boundaries, according to Kan.
On Sunday, the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the proposal, dubbed the ‘Greater Jerusalem’ project, which it said was advancing Israeli annexation of the occupied West Bank and undermining the establishment of a future Palestinian state.
