Israel levels Catholic Church property in E. Jerusalem amid ‘massive demolition’ plan

Children look on as Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Fouad Twal (C) stands amongst the ruins of a Palestinian home, on November 5, 2013. (AFP Photo / Ahmad Gharabli)

http://rt.com/news/israel-palestinian-homes-demolish-323/

The Catholic Church has lashed out at the Israeli government, after its property in East Jerusalem was bulldozed to the ground. Meanwhile, thousands of Palestinian flats were marked for demolition just before US Secretary of State John Kerry’s visit.

Last week Israeli security forces arrived with bulldozers at a piece of property owned by the Catholic Church in east Jerusalem, close to the West Bank city of Bethlehem. They said it had been built without a permit and proceeded to destroy it.

This provoked a backlash from the head of the Catholic Church in Israel who said the demolition was carried out without any prior warning.

“This act is against the law, against justice and humanity, against any ideology upon which peace can be built and increases segregation and hate,” Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Faud Tawwal told AFP at the site of the demolition on Tuesday. The property had been standing before Israel annexed the area after the 1967 Six-Day War, he said.

This comes amid rumors of Israel mulling its biggest demolition plans in years, as over 15,000 Palestinian flats in east Jerusalem are under threat.

The demolition of flats in the Ras Hamis area, which is next to the Shuafat refugee camp, was announced by posters put up on the apartment buildings themselves last week.

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