On July 04, 2017 a force from the occupation army and Israel Municipality in Jerusalem accompanied by a dozer demolished two residences in Al-Ashqariya neighborhood on the claim of building without permit. The force was also reported to demolish the retaining wall surrounding the two houses. In addition, the dozer ravaged a 110m² parcel of land in the process. The following table shows information about the affected owners:

Khalid said that the house was built in 2015. It is 185m² and is composed of three rooms plus a kitchen and a toilet. The affected citizen was supposed to move in to the house one week prior to the demolition.

He added that he didn’t apply for a permit since he knew that the area is still "unplanned" according to the municipality.

Citizen Mohammad told Land Research Center that he built his house one year ago with a total of 110m². The four rooms house cost 350,000 NIS. Mohammad and his kid and wife lived in the house for six months before being demolished on July 04, 2017.

Citizen Khalid concluded by saying that the demolition was carried out without any previous warning or notice by the occupation. The operation lasted two hours.

 residences of Rabay'a family demolished

It should be noted that the demolition site is close to Ramat Shlomo colony that is founded on confiscated lands from Shu'fat town. The reason Israel Municipality bans construction in the area is because they intend to open a new colonial road.

 the rubbles of Rabay'a residences with a view of the colony in the background

Land Research Center LRC sees that demolitions contradict with all the International conventions and Humanitarian laws including:

Article 17 of the (1948) Universal Declaration of Human Rights stating: “Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.”

Section ‹G› of article 23 of the (1907) The Hague Conventions asserting: “In addition to the prohibitions provided by special Conventions, it is especially forbidden to destroy or seize the enemy's property, unless such destruction or seizure be imperatively demanded by the necessities of war.”

Article 53 of the Geneva Fourth Convention (1948) declaring: “Any destruction by the Occupying Power of real or personal property belonging individually or collectively to private persons, or to the State, or to other public authorities, or to social or cooperative organizations, is prohibited, except where such destruction is rendered absolutely necessary by military operations.”

Section 1, Article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966): “The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right of everyone to an adequate standard of living for himself and his family, including adequate food, clothing and housing, and to the continuous improvement of living conditions.

This case study is part of Kan'aan Project