At least 300 Palestinian buildings were demolished by the Israeli occupation authorities in Jerusalem in 2019 said Walid Assaf chairman of the Commission Against the Wall and Settlement.
Assaf said in a press conference on Israeli violations in the Palestinian territories that the Israeli authorities are aiming to isolate Jerusalem City and divide al-Aqsa Mosque by demolishing Palestinian homes and intensifying the settlement construction activity.
He explained that out of 686 demolition operations in the Palestinian territories in 2019 300 were carried out in Jerusalem only.
He touched on the largest demolition campaign in Sur Baher in Jerusalem when 82 Palestinian homes were demolished at once and noted that 22 homes were demolished on one day also in Shu’fat refugee camp.
Assaf said that the Israeli demolition policy has witnessed a dangerous shift explaining that the Israeli authorities moved from demolishing homes to erasing entire communities.
He added that Palestinian national and popular resistance committees with the help of Palestinian citizens staged a six-month sit-in in 2019 to protest the demolition of al-Khan al-Ahmar community and managed to stop the forced displacement of its residents.
