During the reporting period there has been a reduction in the destruction and seizure of Palestinian property throughout the occupied West Bank, particularly in Area C compared to 2016. At the same time such violations in East Jerusalem continued at almost the same high level as last year.

From March to August 2017, over 150 Palestinian owned structures were impacted by demolition, seizure, sealing off, or eviction throughout the occupied West Bank including East Jerusalem. Almost 60% of the incidents took place in East Jerusalem. This brings the total number of affected structures since the beginning of 2017 to 330, resulting in the displacement of over 500 Palestinians including 290 children.

Of the structures (such as classrooms and solar panels) targeted over the 6 month reporting period, 19 structures were funded by the EU or EU Member States (EUMS) for a value of nearly 130,000 €. This brings the number of EU funded structures targeted since the beginning of 2017 to 72, constituting 22% of all Palestinian owned structures targeted by the Israeli Authorities, compared to 17% in 2016.  For reference, between 2009 (when recording began) and 2017, some 400 EU/EUMS funded structures worth over 1.2 million € have been demolished or seized.  It is worth mentioning that the majority of assistance provided by the EU and its Member States still reaches its recipients despite the continued targeting of EU funded structures.

Seizure of EU funded structures have picked up in August as well as the confiscation of equipment and materials for the implementation of EU funded projects. It is too early to assess if this constitutes a trend towards seizures becoming a more widely used modus operandi.

Demolitions, confiscations and seizures are executed by the Israeli authorities on the grounds that the structures have been erected without building permits. For the past years approximately only 1% of the building permits requested by Palestinians in Area C were granted.

The full report can be found in the below link