Last Thursday, December 25, Israeli occupation forces demolished EU-funded irrigation pools in the occupied northern Jordan Valley, Palestinian residents told the Ma’an news agency. Israeli military vehicles arrived in the area of al-Jiftlik accompanied by bulldozers and demolished six irrigation pools used by Palestinian farmers.

Israeli border policemen arrest Palestinian activist Muhammad Khatib during a demonstration commemorating the death of Palestinian minister, Ziad Abu Ein, in the West Bank village of Turmus Aya, north of Ramallah, December 19, 2014. Ziad Abu Ein, died earlier this month in a confrontation with Israeli forces in Turmus Aya during a protest march against settlements.

The pretext for the demolition of the pools, whose construction was funded by grants from European donor countries, was a “military order.” The Jordan Valley covers approximately 30 percent of the occupied West Bank. Over 90 percent of the valley is designated as Area C and off-limits to Palestinian construction.

On Thursday, Israeli occupation forces also destroyed a dairy factory in the village of al-Burj near Hebron, the owner told Ma’an. Yasser Muhammad Salim Masharqa said that Israeli forces and civil administration officials escorted two bulldozers to the village and demolished the steel structure, which measured some 2,000 square meters. Concrete installations measuring about 400 square meters were also destroyed. The factory was located near the separation wall in the southwestern part of the Hebron district. The owner was not allowed to remove machinery from the factory before its demolition. So far, Israel has demolished at least 359 Palestinian structures in the West Bank in 2014, according to the Israeli Committee against House Demolitions.