Scores of Palestinians displaced as Israel demolishes residential building in East Jerusalem

Israeli forces demolished a four-story residential building in the occupied East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan early Monday, displacing approximately 100 Palestinians in what local activists have described as the largest single demolition in the city this year.

The operation began before dawn, with Israeli police and security forces sealing off surrounding roads and taking positions on nearby rooftops. According to witnesses and an AFP journalist on scene, three bulldozers tore into the structure as residents watched, their personal belongings and furniture left scattered in the streets.

The building, located on privately owned Palestinian land near the Old City, contained twelve apartments. Its residents, many of them women, children, and elderly individuals, were given minimal warning.

“They broke down the door while we were asleep and told us we could only change our clothes and take essential papers and documents,” said Eid Shawar, a father of five who lived in the building. “The demolition is a tragedy for all residents.” With no immediate alternative shelter, Shawar stated his seven-member family would be forced to sleep in his car.

Contested Legality and Policy

The Jerusalem Municipality stated the demolition was executed pursuant to a 2014 court order, arguing the land was zoned for “leisure and sports uses” and not for residential construction. It reiterated a longstanding position that such actions address illegal building and enable planned development.

However, Palestinian officials and Israeli human rights groups fiercely contest this narrative. They argue the demolition is part of a systematic Israeli policy to diminish the Palestinian presence in East Jerusalem.

The Jerusalem Governorate, affiliated with the Palestinian Authority, condemned the action as “part of a systematic policy aimed at forcibly displacing Palestinian residents and emptying the city of its original inhabitants.” It added that such acts represent “a clear occupation plan to replace the land’s owners with settlers.”

Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank routinely face severe difficulties obtaining Israeli-issued construction permits. Critics, including the UN and major human rights organizations, state that Israel’s restrictive planning regimes in these areas make legally building homes nearly impossible for Palestinians, forcing families to build without permits to meet basic housing needs.

Israeli rights groups Ir Amim and Bimkom said the demolition in Silwan was “carried out without prior notice, despite the fact that a meeting was scheduled” for Monday to discuss legalizing the structure. They called it the largest demolition of 2025 and noted, “This is part of an ongoing policy. This year alone, around 100 East Jerusalem families have lost their homes.”

Activists also accuse Israeli authorities of using zoning designations—such as designating areas for “national parks” or “green spaces”—as a tool to block Palestinian development and advance settlement interests.

Broader Context of Conflict

The demolition intensifies tensions in Silwan, a flashpoint neighborhood where several hundred Israeli settlers live under heavy security among a Palestinian population of nearly 50,000. The area is adjacent to the Old City and sites sacred to Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

The status of Jerusalem lies at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israel captured East Jerusalem, including the Old City and its holy sites, in the 1967 Six-Day War and later annexed it in a move not recognized by the vast majority of the international community. Israel claims the entire city as its indivisible capital, while Palestinians seek East Jerusalem as the capital of a future independent state.

These demolitions are a regular occurrence, with Palestinian homes and structures often targeted. The United Nations and humanitarian agencies have repeatedly warned that such actions may constitute forcible transfer, a violation of international humanitarian law.

The incident has drawn renewed calls from Palestinian leaders and international observers for immediate intervention to halt displacements and address the underlying planning inequities in the city.

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