Nablus: The Israeli regime on Tuesday destroyed the occupied West Bank home of Palestinian Zeid Amr, 27, who Israel claims aided in the 2015 murder of Jewish colonist couple.
Amr, who is alleged to have staked out the attack site ahead of the shooting, was detained along with four other Hamas-linked suspects a few days after the attack.
Critics say the home demolitions constitute collective punishment, in breach of international humanitarian law, but supporters say it helps deter would-be attackers.
In December, the army blew up the Nablus home of Rajeb Aliweh, a Palestinian accused of masterminding the killing of the Henkins.
Critics also says that the regime will use any pretext to conduct more home demolitions, including unjustly accusing Palestinians of crimes without due process or a trial.
Statistics show that the Israeli regime has, since the beginning of the year, been engaged in a large and systematic demolition campaign across the West Bank, with demolition rates increasing sharply compared to last year.
According to a hard-worded statement by the Palestinian National Office for Defence of the Land and Resistance to Settlements [colonies], the large-scale demolition campaign aims to expel Palestinian residents from their lands, particularly in the Jordan Valley, the Hebron Hills, Nablus and the Palestinian areas around the Israeli colony block of Ma’ale Adumim.
“The large-scale campaign aims to expel Palestinian residents from their lands, says the Palestinian National Office for Defence of the Land and Resistance to Colonies”.
“Since the beginning of 2016, the Israeli occupation authorities have stepped up their efforts to expel Palestinians and demolish their constructions and structures provided to the Palestinian families by the international aid agencies, mainly the EU, as humanitarian aid,” said the office.
The occupation authorities demolish Palestinian homes and structures under the pretext that the owners of those structures do not hold official building permits from the Israeli authorities which, according to the office, approved less than 1.5 per cent of the total number of building requests submitted by the Palestinians.
