GAZA (PIC)– Nearly 700 houses destroyed during the 2008-2009 Israeli war on Gaza have not been reconstructed till now stated the Palestinian Center for Human Rights in a report about the right to housing and the situation of owners of the destroyed houses.
The human rights center said in the report that the policy of destruction pursued by the occupation against the citizens’ houses has started since 1967 but has been remarkably escalated since the Al-Aqsa Intifada in September 2000 during which the occupation had destroyed 11809 houses.
It pointed out that 5403 houses were destroyed during the Furqan war and 286 houses during the recent aggression on Gaza in the last November; including 126 houses that have been completely demolished.
The Center noted that the Israeli siege imposed on the Gaza Strip since 2006 has caused a disastrous situation at the level of the right to housing because of the restrictions imposed on the entry of the construction materials through the crossings.
According to the report the responsible authorities said that there were several reasons for not initiating the construction of the 700 houses noting that some of these houses had been built on governmental land or in dangerous border areas.
It also pointed to the suffering of the owners of the destroyed houses due to delaying the process of the rebuilding of their homes as well as the deterioration of their humanitarian situation.
The report indicated that the UN Relief and Works Agency for refugees “UNRWA” has been building houses for the refugees while the United Nations Development Program al-Rahma Foundation the Palestinian Housing Council and the Ministry of Housing has been building homes for the non-refugees.
The main cause behind the delay in the reconstruction of the destroyed houses for three years after the end of the war on Gaza is the siege imposed by the Israeli occupation forces and which prevents the entry of the construction materials to the Strip.
Starting importing the construction materials from Egypt through the tunnels on the Palestinian – Egyptian borders led to partly overcoming the problem of the blockade and allowed the construction of hundreds of homes that had been destroyed.
The Palestinian Center for Human Rights demanded the Palestinian government to adopt urgent programs to provide the families whose houses had been destroyed during the aggression with housing and the basic necessary services.
The Center proposed the construction of a residential complex composed of several residential buildings on a plot of land allocated by the government to accommodate these families.
It also called on the United Nations its specialized agencies and the Special Rapporteur of the right to adequate housing to force the occupation authorities to abide by the norms and the basic human rights approved by the United Nations and in particular the right to adequate shelter.
