UN Slams Israel Destruction of Jordan Valley Homes
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - The UN humanitarian coordinator for the Palestinian territories criticized Israel's demolition of 36 homes in the Jordan Valley and urged a halt to such actions in the West Bank.
Hundreds of activists, meanwhile, staged an overnight demonstration in the Jordan Valley region.
The moves came as fresh opinion poll evidence showed that faith in the Middle East peace process has largely evaporated among both Israelis and Palestinians.
The demolitions in the Jordan Valley community of Ain el-Helwe on Thursday displaced 66 people, including 36 children, James Rawley said in a statement.
"I am deeply concerned about the ongoing displacement and dispossession of Palestinians... along the Jordan Valley where the number of structures demolished more than doubled in the last year," he said.
"This activity not only deprives Palestinians of access to shelter and basic services, it also runs counter to international law."
His office said more than 1,000 people had been displaced last year in the West Bank and annexed east Jerusalem by demolitions on the grounds that homes had been built without Israeli permits, "which are virtually impossible to obtain".
On Friday, around 300 Palestinians together with Israeli and foreign activists set up camp in abandoned houses near Jericho in the West Bank to protest against Israel's refusal to pull out of the Jordan Valley in case of a peace deal, an AFP photographer said.
