EU calls for halt to Israeli demolition of Palestinian buildings

The EU calls on Israel to cease demolishing Palestinian homes in the West Bank and lift a threat to demolish Palestinian schools, calling them “an impediment towards the two-state solution.”

The statement, issued by the spokesman for EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, comes two days after Israeli bulldozers razed a Bedouin village near Tubas in the Jordan Valley, leaving its nearly 80 inhabitants homeless.

The IDF said the homes were built illegally in an area used for military training.

The daughter of Khalil Dweikat, a man accused of an attack that killed an Israeli rabbi earlier this year, inspects the remains of their home in the West Bank village of Rujeib, near Nablus on November 2, 2020, after it was demolished by Israeli soldiers. (Photo by JAAFAR ASHTIYEH / AFP)

The EU statement says that half the Palestinians made homeless in the demolition were children.

“This large-scale demolition confirms once again the regrettable trend of confiscations and demolitions since the beginning of the year,” it says, adding that Israel has also threatened to raze 52 Palestinian schools, including one in Ras Al-Teen in the West Bank that was co-funded by the EU and EU member states.

“The EU reiterates its call on Israel to halt all such demolitions, including of EU-funded structures, in particular in light of the humanitarian impact of the current coronavirus pandemic,” it says.

— with AFP

Content retrieved from: https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/eu-calls-for-halt-to-israeli-demolition-of-palestinian-buildings/.