BRUSSELS—In a statement issued on Monday, the European Union said the demolition by the Israeli authorities of 10 Palestinian illegally-built buildings in Wadi al Hummus, part of Sur Baher neighbourhood in East Jerusalem. ‘’is against international law.’’
The majority of the buildings are located in Area A and B of the West Bank where, according to the Oslo Accords, all civil issues are under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority, the EU stated. The EU considers East Jerusalem as ”occupied territory.”
An EU spokesperson said : ‘’Israel’s settlement policy, including actions taken in that context, such as forced transfers, evictions, demolitions and confiscations of homes, is illegal under international law.’’
‘’In line with the EU’s long-standing position, we expect the Israeli authorities to immediately halt the ongoing demolitions,’’ the statement added.
The EU said ‘’the continuation of this policy undermines the viability of the two-state solution and the prospect for a lasting peace and seriously jeopardizes the possibility of Jerusalem serving as the future capital of both States.’’
In a reaction to the EU statement, Israeli Minister of Public Security and Strategic Affairs Gilad Erdan said the Oslo Accords grant right to demolish buildings near the West Bank security barrier .
Erdan said the EU was blindly accepting Palestinian “lies” about the homes.“The spokespeople of the EU, as usual, bought into the lies of the Palestinians without any in-depth examination while spreading their bias,” the minister said. “When illegal construction presents a security threat, Israel has the authority, including according to the Oslo Accords, to enforce the law against it. The Supreme Court even ruled in favor of such. The Palestinian purposely built their houses next to the security barrier!”
The Oslo Accords in 1994 established the Palestinian Authority and divided the West Bank into areas A controlled by Israel, B under joint control, and C under Palestinian control. ‘’ Israel has the right to act against security threats,’’ Erdan said. “In the context of the demolitions in Jerusalem’s Wadi Al-Hummus, it is worth emphasizing that the residents themselves were the ones who wanted to move to the west side of the security barrier, and the barrier was then diverted eastwards for them,” he said. “Afterwards, they then began illegally building in a region situated in Jerusalem, even though they were in areas A, B and C.”