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Malegaon: The Israeli bulldozers,
backed by several military vehicles, on Wednesday started
demolition of the entire village of Al Dqayqa, near Yata in Hebron
city of the West Bank, Gulf News correspondent Nasouh
Nazzal reported from Ramallah.
The military vehicles and bulldozers demolished huge portions of a
school and 16 other houses along with many animal barns.
The Israeli soldiers arrived at the village initially targeting
the school while children, up to the age of six years, were
studying.
They dismissed the school children, temporarily detained the
teachers and the school’s administration and demolished three
rooms of the five-room school which accommodates the village’s
boys and girls.
Yousef Basaytah, a teacher at the school, told Gulf News in an
interview from the site of the demolished school that the school
and the other houses were constructed in the Zone C and their
owners have repeatedly tried to obtain the necessary building
permits but the Israeli authorities never granted them such
permits.
"A couple of weeks ago the Israeli authorities handed demolition
orders to the school and tens of houses in the village," he said,
adding that the owners of the houses and the school’s management
contacted the authorities concerned, but all their attempts had
gone in vain as the Israelis were determined to demolish the
entire village which is located between several Israeli colonies.
"The Israeli bulldozers… targeted the houses of the family of Al
Najadah and… demolished them," he said.
"Tens of other houses are still under threat [of demolition] where
the village’s residents are expecting the Israeli bulldozers to
arrive at any moment to demolish them," he said.
Basaytah said that the Israeli forces also destroyed several
animal barns owned by the villagers.
He said almost every single house in the village has already
received a demolition order. The village has more than 100 houses.
"We live in this village on our own lands which are not disputed
by the Israeli authorities, but they claim that our houses, that
were built more than 40 years ago, do not have building permits,"
he said.
The Israeli authorities demolished 13 water wells a couple of
weeks ago, he said, adding that 65 more wells have been given
demolition orders.
"The families who were living in the demolished houses ended up
being homeless and are forced to spend night in the open in such a
cold weather.
"The village council has already contacted the various concerned
Palestinian ministries and authorities, the Red Cross and other
human rights organisations to provide those people with the tents
and other essentials, but so far the villagers have not received
anything," he said.
Zahran Abu Qubaitah, the Chairman of the Yata Municipality, told
Gulf News that the Israelis will demolish the entire village to
expand the surrounding Israeli colonies and connect them with each
other.
He said the municipality officials tried to reach the village of
Al Dqayqa during the demolition but the Israeli authorities
informed them that the entire village was a military zone, and
prevented them from reaching the village.
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