UK issues ‘grave concern’ over record Palestinian homes demolitions

The British Government says it has registered its “grave concern” over record levels of Israeli demolitions of Palestinian property.

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and Middle East Minister Tobias Ellwood raised the matter with Israeli Ambassador Mark Regev on 1 March, while the British Embassy in Tel Aviv pressed the case with Israeli authorities on 28 February.

Questions were raised in the House of Lords this week about the slated demolition of the village school in Khan al Ahmar, a Palestinian Bedouin village near the West Bank city of Jericho, after the IDF ordered that 44 structures be bulldozed.

Get The Jewish News Daily Edition by email and never miss our top stories Free Sign Up

Ellwood met the village’s leader on a visit last year, and Government spokeswoman Baroness Anelay said: “We are gravely concerned about continued demolition of Palestinian property by the Israeli authorities, including plans to demolish the Bedouin village of Khan al Ahmar.”

The village is near the Jewish settlement of Kfar Adumim and the courts have ruled the structures “illegal,” despite appeals. The villagers’ lawyer Shlomo Lecker said they had been given seven days to leave.

The United Nations and European Union have urged Israeli authorities not to demolish the village, while Palestinian Authority leaders say that doing so would constitute a war crime under the International Criminal Court’s Rome Statute.

Campaigners say the significance lies in the village’s location on the edge of E1, an area that serves as a land corridor between Palestinian populations in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Building Jewish settlements in E1 would end hopes of a contiguous Palestinian state.

In response to other questions about the uprooting of Palestinian-owned olive trees in the village of Kharas, near Hebron, Anelay said: “We have expressed our serious concerns to the Israeli Government and security officials about the destruction of olive trees on a number of occasions.

“We hold the Israeli authorities responsible for enforcing the rule of law and providing the appropriate protection to the Palestinian civilian population.”

Support your Jewish community. Support your Jewish News

Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.

For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.

Read more

Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.

You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.

100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...

Engaging

Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.

Celebrating

There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.

Pioneering

In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.

Campaigning

Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.

Easy access

In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.

Voice of our community to wider society

The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.

We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.

Help us here