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Israeli forces, settlers demolish homes near occupied East Jerusalem
Israel’s army demolished two inhabited houses in the town of Qatanna northwest of occupied East Jerusalem.
The Wafa news agency cited local sources as saying Israeli troops and military vehicles surrounded the village, then demolished two homes belonging to brothers Iyad and Ziad Houshieh.
Each home, about 150 square metres (1,615sq feet) in size, housed at least 20 people, the agency said. Authorities notified the siblings of the impending demolition of their homes 10 years ago.
Meanwhile, local media is also reporting that a group of Israeli settlers demolished four Palestinian homes in the al-Hathroura Bedouin community in the Khan al-Ahmar area, east of occupied East Jerusalem, this morning.
The demolitions come during an escalating policy of targeting Palestinian homes in the occupied West Bank.
During October, Israeli authorities carried out 25 demolitions that affected 28 facilities, including 15 inhabited homes, two uninhabited homes, and 11 agricultural structures. They also distributed 30 notices to demolish Palestinian buildings.
Israeli forces issue order to seize land in Jordan Valley
Israeli forces have issued an order to confiscate lands in the northern Jordan Valley, the Palestinian news agency Wafa is reporting, citing local sources.
Mahdi Daraghmeh, head of the al-Maleh Village Council, said the order targets land registered in the official property registry in the Khirbet al-Hadid area, Wafa said. The exact size of the targeted land was not specified.
Daraghmeh told the news agency that Israeli authorities continue to seize Palestinian-owned lands in the northern Jordan Valley.
The area, home to tens of thousands of Palestinians, has long been a focus of Israeli settlement expansion and land confiscation.
Israel carrying out ‘systematic destruction’ of Palestine’s natural resources
The Palestinian Environment Quality Authority has warned that the country is facing an unprecedented environmental crisis amid Israel’s war on Gaza and escalating settler violence across the occupied West Bank.
In a statement carried by the Wafa news agency, the authority said Israel’s war on Gaza has generated about 60 million tonnes of rubble and approximately 100,000 tonnes of explosives, with a destructive force equivalent to nine nuclear bombs.
It warned that the environmental and health effects could last for decades.
The Palestinian Authority body said it is working to integrate environmental recovery into Gaza’s reconstruction plans, including soil and water rehabilitation.
Meanwhile, in the West Bank, it said demolitions, land confiscations and illegal Israeli settlement expansion are degrading soil, polluting water sources and depleting groundwater reserves.
Israeli settlements discharge an estimated 40 million cubic metres (1.4 billion cubic feet) of untreated wastewater each year, it added.
The warnings come as the UN’s humanitarian office (OCHA) has noted that this year’s olive harvest season in the West Bank has seen the highest levels of violence in years, with settler attacks injuring at least 17 Palestinian farmers so far.
