São Paulo – The UM requested this Wednesday (19th) the halting of house demolitions in the West Bank, Palestine, by Israeli authorities. According to a statement by the organization, 22 buildings were destroyed this week in communities of Palestinian Bedouins nearby Jerusalem.
“A total of 22 structures were demolished in four communities, displacing 78 Palestinians, including 49 children, the vast majority of whom are Palestine refugees”, reported Robert Piper and Felipe Sánchez, representatives of UN agencies in the region, in a statement. “The strategic implications of these demolitions are clear. [They] are occurring in parallel with [Israeli] settlement expansion”, added Piper.
According to a UN statement, the four communities are among 46 located in the central West Bank included in Israeli plans to transfer Palestinian Bedouins communities to other places. UN Secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, had previously stated that the implementation of these relocation plans increase forced evictions and contravenes Israel’s obligations as an occupying power.
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani