June 18 (THEWILL) — Israeli authorities on Thursday issued demolition notices for nine Palestinian homes in the town of Ash-Shuyukh, northeast of Hebron in the occupied West Bank, intensifying tensions in the territory amid renewed concerns over settlement expansion, planning restrictions, and long-standing disputes over civilian construction rights in Area A.
The affected houses, located in the Qanan Nias area of Ash-Shuyukh, were reportedly built by members of the Abu Eid, Ayaydeh, and Jabarin families, who say they had submitted the required documentation to obtain building permits and were shocked to receive the demolition orders, according to the Palestinian Wafa news agency.
The notices were issued because the structures were built without Israeli permits.
Ash-Shuyukh lies within “Area A,” which constitutes roughly 18 per cent of the West Bank and, under the 1993 Oslo Accords, is designated as territory under full civilian and security control of the Palestinian Authority.
However, despite this designation, construction and planning approvals remain subject to oversight by the Israeli-run Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), a unit within the Israeli Ministry of Defence, which retains final authority over building permits across the occupied territory.
The latest demolition orders come at a time of heightened activity in the Hebron district, where Israeli authorities this week began excavation and bulldozing operations to establish a new settlement reportedly named “Doren” near the city.
In another development, Israeli authorities have also taken over the planning and construction authority related to the historic Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron.
Palestinian officials have described the move as a unilateral action that undermines prior agreements and alters the status quo of one of the most sensitive religious sites in the region.
Since Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem in 1967, human rights organisations and Palestinian authorities have repeatedly accused Israeli administrations of pursuing a demolition policy aimed at restricting Palestinian urban expansion while facilitating the growth of Israeli settlements and military infrastructure across strategic corridors.
Critics argue that such measures fragment Palestinian communities and prevent the natural expansion of towns into cohesive urban centres, while Israeli authorities maintain that demolitions are carried out strictly based on building without approved permits.
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