Israeli national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir oversaw the demolition of a Palestinian-owned residential building in occupied East Jerusalem on October 6, 2026, leaving approximately 70 people homeless, most of them women and children.
Ben Gvir rode a bulldozer at the demolition site in the neighborhood of Al-Tur. He posted on X that Israel had reclaimed the land, writing: "The bulldozers of governance never rest for a moment. That's the only way it works."
Fayez Khalfawi, a resident of the building, described the operation to Middle East Eye. Israeli soldiers surrounded the structure at approximately 3am. They stormed apartments, forcing open doors without knocking and forcibly evicting residents who were prevented from retrieving belongings.
"Women and children were asleep and were terrified when the apartments were stormed," Khalfawi said. "Some women rushed out without headscarves due to the shock of the raid, while the children screamed and cried inconsolably."
The entire building was razed. According to Khalfawi, the contents of every apartment were destroyed. "We are searching through the rubble for our clothes, hoping we might be able to retrieve them," he said.
Ben Gvir arrived at the site flanked by heavily armed police during the demolition operation. The subheading from Middle East Eye notes that Israeli forces gave residents little warning before the operation.
The demolition occurred in occupied East Jerusalem, territory contested between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. House demolitions in occupied East Jerusalem have been an ongoing point of dispute in Israeli-Palestinian relations, with Palestinian groups and international observers characterizing them as violations of Palestinian rights, while Israeli authorities typically cite security or planning law violations.