- Violation: demolition of houses, walls, and an electricity network.
- Violation date: 01/02/2022.
- Location: Qutait area, Ad Dhahiriya town, Hebron Governorate.
- The perpetrator: the so-called Israeli Civil Administration.
- The affected party: citizen Maher Mahboub and others.
The violation details:
On Tuesday, February 1, 2022, the Israeli occupation authorities demolished three houses and retaining walls, as well as an electricity network under the pretext that they were built without licenses in the “Qutait” area, south of Ad Dhahiriya town in the Hebron governorate.
At approximately ten o’clock AM, a force of the occupation army, accompanied by the so-called Border Guard Police, and personnel from the Organization and Construction Department of the “Israeli Civil Administration” broke through a Wall gate and stormed the target area bringing with them heavy machinery comprised of a digger produced by (LIUGONG) company and two bulldozers, one produced by (VOLVO) and the other by (CAT).
Photos 1-3: scenes from the destruction process of the Palestinian homes and facilities in the town of Al Dhaheriya.
As soon as they have surrounded the site, the attacking force began demolishing the house of Mr. Maher Salem Mahboub, which was under construction and was built of stone and reinforced concrete. As a result, the whole family of Mr. Mahboub, who is comprised of 6 people, including 4 children were made homeless.
Speaking to LRC field researcher, the owner Mahboob, 50 years old, said the following:
“On 26/01/2022, the occupation authorities had issued an order asking me to self-demolish and remove the house on the pretext of not having a building permit in accordance with the Military Order No. 1797 within a period of 96 hours. Having refused to follow order, they came today and carried out their threat.”
Photos 4+5: The rubble of Maher Mahboub’s home
Picture 6: An order to demolish and remove the house of citizen Mahboub
Having done with the house of the citizen Mahboub, the Israeli squad went on to demolish two other houses close to the first one and owned by the Al-Faqir family from the Negev region in Israel built of stones, bricks and concrete and roofed with wood and tiles. The two houses which were turned to ruble are 80M2 each and were ready to move in.
Photos 7+8+9: The rubble of the Al-Faqir’s family dwellings.
The occupation , also, demolished a metal wall surrounding the plot of land on which the two dwellings were located. The length of the fence (tin panels) is about 150 meters, surrounding a plot of land estimated at about 7 dunums.
Moreover, the occupation authorities demolished a 700 meters long retaining wall made of concrete and stones topped with barbed wire, which surrounded a plot of land for a citizen from inside Israel. This plot, whose area is estimated at about 10 dunums, is planted with olive seedlings and almonds which were totally uprooted and vandalized.
The final action committed by the demolition squad was the destruction of the electricity network that supplied the target area with power. The demolition squad cut the cables and disconnected electricity from the target area, then, the bulldozer uprooted the poles and destroyed them.
Photos 10 + 11 + 12: The electricity network that was
destroyed by the occupation in the Qutait area.
The electricity network belongs to the Local Palestinian South Electricity Company responsible, as part of its duty, to provide electricity power to that particular area. The destroyed electric line is 1000 meters long and comprises 14 wooden poles. It is a low-voltage network, serving four subscribers in that target area.
According to confirmation by the electricity company, the occupation authorities destroyed the network without prior notifications, explaining that they did not receive or find any notifications targeting the electricity network.
It should be noted that about a week ago, the occupation authorities carried out a similar demolition operation near the Quteit area, when they demolished an agricultural service room and a metal fence surrounding a piece of land near the site, under the same pretext (not having a permit).
It is also worth noting that this area is located between the towns of Ad-Dhahirah and Al-Ramadin at the southern borders of the West Bank and is considered an urban expansion area for the two towns, where housing, commercial establishments and other workshops have been built over there. But, recently, it has become a target for Israeli demolition and vandalism squads.
The Land Research Center
LRC
