Land Research Center

Violation: Demolishing a house under security claims.

Location: Turmus’ayya town / North Ramallah.

Date: July 9^th 2021.

Perpetrators: The Israeli Occupation Forces.

Victims: Family of prisoner Montassir Shalabi.

Description:

In the early morning hours of Friday, the Israeli Occupation Forces raided Turmus’ayya north Ramallah city, and the Occupation forces targeted a house belongs to Montasser Shalabi (44).

The Occupation forces encircled the neighborhood, and planted explosives around the house, and bombed it at 5:00 am, before withdrawing from the neighborhood.

Noteworthy, The Israeli Occupation Accuses prisoner Ash-Shalabi of opening fire on their troops nearby Za’atara checkpoint south Nablus on Sunday May 2^nd 2021. And was arrested from his house in Silwad four days later. In May 9^th 2021, the So-Called Israeli Army Commander of the West Bank passed a resolution to demolish the house as a collective punishment for Ash-Shalabi family. However, the family submitted a petition but it was refused in May 30^th 2021. The family headed to an Israeli Anti-Occupation organization named HaMoked to file a petition to the Israeli Supreme court in June 4^th 2021, but the petition was refused in June 30^th, and the court ordered demolishing the family house within five days.

The targeted house is a “Villa” of two floors with a total area of 500 m², on a plot (750 m²), inhabited by a family of 8 (Muntassir’s wife and his five children), the house is built in the northern neighborhood of Silwad in an area crowded with houses.

LRC observes that the occupation demolition policy is a collective punishment practiced against families of martyrs and prisoners. The occupation claims that these are policies to stop Palestinians from practicing any sort of resistance against the occupation or illegal settlers. On the other hand, settlers commit crimes constantly against Palestinians, like burning Ad-Dawabsha family, and run over Palestinian women and children with their cars especially in areas close to the settlements, cutting and uprooting thousands of trees yearly other than stealing lands for colonial expansion, all these assaults are protected by the Israeli army , while Palestinians who try to defend their properties and children are subjected of solo and collective punishments, Israeli occupation even unjustifiably accuse Palestinians of resistance in case they needed to demolish their homes for their colonial projects.

According to article 119 of that law, “Confiscation” of property means that the owner cannot re-build structures in case of demolition. Land Research Center sees Israeli practices and measures as a collective punishment against the families of martyrs and prisoners.  The occupation seeks to traumatize and humiliate Palestinian families through such practices.