Home demolition is not a cruelty of the far past, but is alive and well today in Israel, a country that American and Western officials describe as the only democracy in the Middle East. In 1999, partly on Prime Minister Barak s watch, Amnesty International reported that at least 39 Palestinian homes, of which over 20 were in Jerusalem were demolished leaving more than 140 Palestinians, including 70 children, homeless. Salim, a Palestinian Authority driver and others, have called this an arm of Israel s policy of ethnic cleansing. Palestinians and their houses are targeted, Amnesty states, simply because they are Palestinians, and the policy is geared to secure Israel s grip on Palestinian land. Our thanks to Anja Zueckmantel for transcribing the interview.
Any resistance is met with beating, kicking, shooting, and arrest.
A 16 year-old boy who came to help lost his left kidney to a rubber bullet, which also damaged part of his stomach. Demolishing a home in the West Bank and Gaza is considered a military operation. The law requires a 72-hour notification before demolishing an Israeli home. But, as a military operation in the West Bank, security considerations dictate the reaction, and any attempt to resist will be considered a threat to the safety of the soldiers. Repeated court appeals for an advance notification were rejected because they give the Palestinians a chance to defend themselves, which endangers the soldiers security.