UN urges Israel to stop demolitions, evictions in occupied Palestine
The United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Tor Wennesland has called on the Israeli authorities to stop the demolition and eviction operations in the occupied Palestinian territories, WAFA News Agency reported on Saturday.
On her part, the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in the Occupied Palestinian Territories Lynn Hastings warned that the recent Israeli Supreme Court’s rejection of petitions against eviction orders of the residents of Masafer Yatta in the occupied West Bank amounts to forcible transfer.
“The decision affects over one thousand Palestinians including 500 children in the occupied West Bank and allows for the eviction of the residents,” said Hastings in a statement. “As all domestic legal remedies have been exhausted, the community is now unprotected and at risk of imminent displacement.”
The UN Humanitarian Coordinator warned that “such evictions resulting in displacement could amount to a forcible transfer, contrary to resolutions of the United Nations Security Council and international law.”
She reiterated the calls of the United Nations Secretary-General on Israel “to cease demolitions and evictions in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, in line with its obligations under international law.”
Yesterday, the Israeli occupation authorities announced a plan to build 4,000 housing units in different parts of the West Bank. The Palestinian presidency strongly criticized this Israeli plan which aims at demolishing around 12 villages and displacing more than 4,000 Palestinians. The presidency urged the international community to assume its responsibilities and implement its resolutions to stop the Israeli settlement expansion and end the occupation.
Hamda Mustafa