Three homes were destroyed last Wednesday, April 15, under a demolition order in the unrecognized village of Dahamesh, near Lod – the third demolition of illegal construction in an Arab community within 48 hours. The demolition in Dahamesh began at 4 AM., when hundreds of policemen, including riot control units, surrounded the area to secure the entrance of three bulldozers that demolished three homes belonging to the Assaf family that were under construction.
Ruins of the three homes destroyed last Wednesday under a demolition order in the unrecognized village of Dahamesh, near Lod. This was the third in a series of demolitions in the Arab community in Israel within 48 hours. (Photo: Activestills)
Walid Assaf told Haaretz that he had struggled for years to secure a building permit, and “whoever knows the story of Dahamesh knows that we are doing everything to get recognition and a permit to build a home. We’ve gone all the way to the Supreme Court. They demolished today, but I’m not giving up. We aren’t leaving. This is our land; we were born here and here we will die.”
On Monday, April 13, a home was demolished in Kafr Kanna in the Lower Galilee, and on Tuesday three structures were knocked down in the unrecognized village of Kafr Saua in the Negev. The Arab Higher Monitoring Committee, the main Arab leadership body in Israel, announced a general strike in the Arab sector on April 28, including in schools, because of the demolitions. The committee also said it would help the affected families rebuild their homes without any help from international organizations. Many Arabs citizens believe that the recent spate of demolitions signifies a change of policy in the wake of the recent Knesset election.
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