The Israeli regime has demolished a 120-year-old building in the occupied West Bank, as part of its ongoing efforts to displace native Palestinians and expand illegal settlements for Israeli settlers.
The historic Palestinian home in the Ramallah countryside that was demolished earlier this week was built about 40 years before the unlawful inception of the Israeli entity itself.
Israeli authorities claimed that the house lacked the permits required under Israeli regulations, a pretext Palestinians say is often used by the Israeli regime to justify the demolition of their homes.
Saddam Nafe’a, the owner of the demolished home, said the Israeli forces started demolishing the historic structure without any prior notice while he was at work.
Israel demolished a Palestinian home that was about 40 years older than the state of Israel itself.
Palestinians say it’s part of an accelerating campaign to wipe out Palestinian heritage and history on their land. pic.twitter.com/j8ziWkXoDA
— AJ+ (@ajplus) July 31, 2026
“It’s a historic house. It does no harm to anyone or anything,” he said. “We have greatly suffered because of this displacement policy.”
“Nowadays, they are trying to force people out by occupying their houses, seizing their livelihood, and taking everything they own, leaving us with nothing,” he added.
“They want to drive us from our homeland, but we are staying here.”
Homes and shops of Palestinians are increasingly being emptied of their owners and replaced by Zionist settlements.
Palestinian activists warn that the continued demolition of Palestinian-owned property is part of an accelerating campaign to wipe out Palestinian heritage and history on the land.
More than 700,000 Israeli settlers currently live in over 230 settlements built since the 1967 occupation of the West Bank and East al-Quds.
The international community regards these settlements as illegal under international law and the Geneva Conventions due to their construction on occupied Palestinian territories.
Both the UN General Assembly and the UN Security Council have repeatedly condemned Israel’s settlement activities in numerous resolutions.
In July 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s decades-long occupation of historical Palestine is illegal and demanded the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East al-Quds.
