An Israeli human rights organization confirmed that the rate of house demolitions in East Jerusalem doubled during the war on Gaza.

The Ir Amim Human Rights Foundation said in a report published today, Thursday, “Since last October 7, it seems that the State of Israel has been experiencing the euphoria of demolishing homes in East Jerusalem, as dozens of Palestinian families found themselves in the street without a roof over their heads.”

According to data collected by the organization, “the average rate of demolitions was 50% higher than the annual record for demolitions recorded in East Jerusalem.

If things continue like this, we will reach about 215 housing units demolished annually, compared to 144 housing units demolished during the year 2020, which was a record number at that time, and this increase is considered a crazy and unprecedented jump.”

From the information collected by Ir Amim researchers, it appears that “the pace increased throughout the months of the war, and that was even before Minister Ben Gvir obtained the powers he was promised during the coalition agreements to “enforce building violations.”

According to Ir Amim, in the context of taking advantage of the current situation and the state of war, Israel is targeting active residents who are waging long-term struggles against the demolition of homes, just as happened with the spokesman for the people of the Al-Bustan neighborhood in Silwan after 15 years of struggle, and in this way also dozens of homes were demolished. In the village of Al-Walaja, which has been trying to submit the necessary plans to settle the situation in the village with the municipality for years.

Ir Amim stressed that the demolition of homes is only part of a wide series of violent repressive and intimidation measures that Israel is currently using against Palestinians under its control: collective punishment, police violence, eviction of homes, closing the Holy Mosque to Muslims for several months, and more. All of this indicates that the government insists in this war on doing everything in its power to set fire to East Jerusalem.

The Ir Amim Foundation's long-term monitoring shows that Israel has in the past avoided home demolitions during periods of military conflict out of a desire to prevent the spread of violence to other arenas, yet the current far-right government is not shy about the spread of violence, and may even be concerned about it.

It is noteworthy that, according to the statistics of the Ir Amim Foundation, since the beginning of the war, 141 facilities have been demolished in East Jerusalem, including 104 residential facilities and 37 non-residential ones.