Description

JERUSALEM (Ma'an) -- Israeli authorities demolished an under-construction house in the occupied East Jerusalem neighborhood of Beit Hanina on Wednesday morning, witnesses said.

Forces blocked off the Al-Mouroha district and broke into the house, demolishing its foundations, the owner Waleed Sadeq Idkedek said.

Idkedek said the demolition took place without prior warning, and called on human rights organizations and the Red Crescent to intervene in the continuous forced displacement of Palestinians in Jerusalem.

On April 18, Israeli police forcibly evicted 14 members of the Natsheh family after an Israeli court ruled in favor of settlers, who moved into the property.

The incident was the first eviction in the Palestinian neighborhood Beit Hanina, but settlers have taken over several homes in nearby Sheikh Jarrah.

EU missions in Jerusalem and Ramallah slammed the eviction in Beit Hanina, saying they were "deeply concerned by the plans to build a new settlement in the midst of this traditional Palestinian neighborhood."

UNRWA's director in the West Bank Felipe Sanchez said the forced evictions broke international law.

"We urge the Israeli authorities to find an immediate solution to enable the Palestinian population of the occupied West Bank, to lead a normal life, in full realization of their rights," Sanchez said.