International aid agencies say the Israeli demolition of Palestinian homes has hit a five-year high since the start of direct talks between the Palestinian Authority and Tel Aviv regime.
In a statement released on Friday, a coalition of 25 aid organizations said the demolitions hiked by almost 50 percent between July – when the US-sponsored talks began – and December 2013, compared to the same period in 2012.
The statement also said displacement of Palestinians has spiked by nearly 75 percent over the same period.
The coalition, which included Oxfam and Christian Aid, said 663 Palestinian homes have been demolished last year, the highest in five years.
Around 20 percent of those buildings were built with international donor aid.
“International and local aid organizations have faced increasingly severe restrictions in responding to the needs created by the unlawful demolition of civilian property, in violation of Israel’s obligation to facilitate the effective delivery of aid,” the groups added.
Meanwhile, the International Red Cross has suspended supplying tents to displaced Palestinians in the Jordan Valley in protest to the Israeli obstruction and confiscation of aid.
Rights groups say Tel Aviv’s demolitions are aimed at grabbing more land for construction of illegal settlements on Palestinian lands and launching military projects in the occupied territories.
Israel’s persistent settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank has created a major obstacle against efforts made to establish peace in the Middle East.
The Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank are illegal under the Geneva Conventions, which forbid construction on occupied lands.
MRS/AB/SS
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