Gush Shalom says November brought the demolition of Palestinian-owned homes in the East Jerusalem villages of Jabl Mukabr and Issawiya. The advocacy group says bulldozers also destroyed the homes of brothers Ibrahim and Imad Sarafandi, who lived separately with their families in a village outside Bethlehem. But the advocacy groups say that still represents a slow-down in demolitions. Since 1967, the Israeli government has demolished some 6,000 Palestinian homes.
Israeli authorities say houses are demolished because they are built illegally, without permits.
Halper attributes the decline in demolitions to the political pressure mounting on Prime Minister Ehud Barak's administration. Hundreds of demolition orders in Gaza and Jerusalem were frozen in October, as the government sought to avert conflict with Arabs, according to news reports. Israeli officials say the freeze was part of a go-slow approach. The government recently established a special housing demolition committee to review existing policy. The committee is considering whether to recommend ending demolitions altogether, Regev said.