Building permits to Zionists made feasible by demolition orders to Palestinian buildings

It is noteworthy that exactly 12 years ago the exact number 2450 appeared in an AFP/Reuters report in February 1997- which said that Prime Minister Netanyahu was expected to approve the construction of 2,450 residences for Jews, as a first phase of a plan to establish a neighborhood of 6,500 homes for 25,000 Jews on the 185-hectare (459-acre) site.

Most of which were approved as part of a plan to build a Jewish settlement of Har Homa on the hill of Jabal Abu Ghneim, as it is known to Palestinians. Netanyahu said: "We will build everywhere in Jerusalem and on Har Homa...it's also our sovereign right to build in Jerusalem."

As for now, the "OCHA" report issued yesterday points out that the "Israeli" authorities carried out the orders to remove 180 Palestinian-owned buildings in the West Bank since the beginning of the year, resulting in the displacement of some 319 Palestinians, including 167 children, adding that despite the absence of any Demolition Orders (DOs) since last July, yet the "Israeli" authorities continue to issue orders to stop construction, which means exposing thousands of Palestinians to the risk of having their homes removed. 

The report issued by the "Israeli" Movement "Peace Now" that the occupation authorities carried out 199 DOs in West Bank settlements (out of 2900 orders), compared to 1663 DOs carried out for Palestinian-owned buildings (out of 4993 orders). 

The report pointed out that the "Israeli" government carried out since the beginning of its occupation of the West Bank in 1967, several measures to restrict the Palestinians from the use of land and resources. It also points out that more than 60 percent of the West Bank fall within the framework of "Areas C", the control of which will gradually be moved to the Palestinian Authority according to the Oslo Accords, which have not been implemented yet. 

In other words, construction in this area whether a private house, a barn for animals or infrastructure project, still requires the approval of the "Israeli" Civil Authority, which is supervised by the Ministry of Defense (War). 

The report added that in practice, the "Israeli" authorities allow Palestinian construction in less than 1% of the Areas (C), and as a result Palestinians are left with the only choice to build "illegally" and risk demolition of their homes and their subsequent displacement.