It’s happening again. Not that it ever stopped. Not that it will be the last. 

A Palestinian was made to demolish his own home in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Issawiya just Tuesday, Ma’an News reported. 

As if that weren’t enough, Firas Mahmoud had to do it himself. If he didn’t he would be charged 300,000 shekels ($78,518) for the cost of demolition. 

For Firas, this was undoubtedly a tough call. He had begun constructing the 130-square-meter home in the Habayil al-Arab area just 8 months ago and was just about to move in with his family. 

He never got the chance to do that.

Source: Maan Images

According to Issawiya local committee member Muhammad Abu al-Hummus, Israeli authorities have been targeting the Habayil al-Arab neighborhood as of late. They take photos and deliver demolition warrants “haphazardly,” he said. 

A spokesperson for the Jerusalem municipality had previously told Ma’an that “self-demolitions occur when house owners heed legal notices and court rulings and remove building code violations independently. Specific instances of residents heeding these notices are not verified in real time, therefore we cannot comment on them."

Source: Maan News

Israeli authorities have ramped up demolition orders in East Jerusalem and many Palestinian families are paying the price. 

According to the UNOCHA, Israel demolished a record 1,093 structures in 2016 alone, including 190 in East Jerusalem alone. 1,601 Palestinians became displaced as a result of that. 

“These are the highest West Bank demolition and displacement figures at least since OCHA started recording them in 2009,” the UN organization said.

Compared to the Jewish population, Palestinians receive a disproportionally low number of permits. This is mainly because of how expensive permit applications are and also because of how lengthy the process can be. 


According to the Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem (ARIJ), the procedures to apply for Israeli-issued building permits could reach up to 300,000 shekels ($79,180), and for many Palestinians in East Jerusalem this is something they cannot afford. 

Four of five Palestinians in East Jerusalem live under the poverty line, and so applying for such costly permits is a near impossibility. As a result, only seven percent of Jerusalem building permits go to Palestinian neighborhoods.

While this may not be news for the rest of the world, for some Palestinians this is a loss of a lifetime of savings. 

Could it be that Israeli authorities are making them pay the price for the UN resolution of December 24th, that >demands Israel halt its settlements on Palestinian land? Perhaps so.