Al-Quds Center: Dangerous Israeli escalation in home demolitions in al-Quds over past two years

Hassan Khater, head of al-Quds International Center, stated on Monday that the Israeli entity’s policy of demolishing homes in occupied al-Quds and its surrounding areas is not new, but it has witnessed a dangerous escalation over the past two years, as part of a “systematic campaign to empty the city of its original inhabitants.”

In a press statement to the Palestinian news agency Shihab on Monday, Khater explained that the Israeli entity is focusing its operations in the southern and eastern suburbs of Jerusalem, particularly in the town of Silwan, south of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and the neighborhoods of Batn al-Hawa and Ras al-Amud.

He pointed out that the eviction of the Khalil Basbous family home in the Batn al-Hawa neighborhood today is a stark example of this policy.

He added that the Israeli authorities no longer even adhere to the formal procedures they previously used as a pretext, such as waiting for court rulings before carrying out demolitions or evictions. He pointed out that many Jerusalemite homes still have pending cases before the courts, yet their owners are surprised by immediate eviction orders in preparation for direct demolition.

Khater explained that the number of homes demolished in occupied Jerusalem during the past year, 2025, approached 320, a dangerous figure given the near-total ban on granting new building permits to Palestinians. This means that demolitions are not accompanied by any compensation or possibility of rebuilding, exacerbating the rates of forced displacement.

He emphasized that this policy is inseparable from a comprehensive system of repressive measures that the Israeli entity uses to target Jerusalemites, including killings, arrests, closures, exorbitant taxes, and continuous fines.

He pointed out that the Israeli authorities have begun imposing fines even for smoking in public places, amounting to 500 shekels for individuals and 5,000 shekels for businesses, as part of a policy of economic and psychological pressure aimed at forcing residents to leave the city.

In the same context, the Wadi Hilweh Information Center reported this morning that Zionist settlers seized the Basbous family home immediately after its evacuation and began maintenance work around it. The family of 13 was forced to leave their two-apartment home in Batn al-Hawa neighborhood of Silwan in occupied East al-Quds.