Israeli authorities on Monday demolished a four-storey residential building in the Silwan neighbourhood of east Jerusalem, leaving dozens of Palestinian residents unsure of where to go after being forcibly evicted in the early hours.
The structure, housing around 100 people—including women, children, and the elderly—was the latest in a series of demolitions targeting what Israel describes as unauthorised construction in the city’s annexed eastern sector. Palestinian officials denounced the move as part of a “systematic policy” to displace local residents.
“The demolition is a tragedy for all residents,” said Eid Shawar, a father of five whose home was destroyed. “They broke down the door while we were asleep and told us we could only take essential papers and documents. My family will have to sleep in the car tonight.”
Three bulldozers began tearing down the building early Monday, scattering residents’ belongings onto nearby streets, while Israeli police cordoned off surrounding roads and deployed security forces on neighbouring rooftops. By midday, most of the structure had been razed.
Built on privately owned Palestinian land, the building had been slated for demolition for lacking a permit, according to activists. Two Israeli NGOs, Ir Amin and Bimkom, said the demolition was the largest carried out in 2025, leaving around 100 east Jerusalem families homeless.
Palestinians face significant obstacles in obtaining building permits under Israeli planning policies, fueling longstanding tensions in east Jerusalem and across the occupied West Bank. “This is part of a systematic policy aimed at forcibly displacing Palestinian residents and emptying the city of its original inhabitants,” said the Jerusalem governorate, affiliated with the Palestinian Authority.
The Jerusalem municipality, responsible for administering both west and east Jerusalem, said the demolition followed a 2014 court order. The municipality stated that the land was zoned for leisure and sports, not residential use, and that residents had been offered multiple extensions and solutions, which they declined.
Activists counter that Israel frequently designates areas in east Jerusalem as national parks or open spaces to advance settlement expansion. Silwan, located at the foot of the Old City, is home to nearly 50,000 Palestinians living alongside hundreds of Israeli settlers.
Residents expressed deep distress over the eviction. “There were children and even sick people like my brother, who is a cancer patient, living in the building. All this is very painful,” said Ashraf Sqafi, a relative of one of the displaced families.
The demolition comes amid ongoing tensions in east Jerusalem, particularly since the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack and the subsequent war in Gaza. Israel considers east Jerusalem part of its capital, while Palestinians seek the area as the capital of a future state. The UN considers Israel’s annexation of east Jerusalem illegal and does not recognize the city as Israel’s capital.
