Jerusalem: Israel demolishes Catholic Church property, prepares to destroy hundreds more homes

Patriarch views the devastated site

The head of the Roman Catholic Church in Israel, Palestine and Jordan protested yesterday against Israel's demolition of a church-owned property in annexed East Jerusalem, saying it eroded chances for peace.

"It is an act of vandalism that infringes international law, Patriarch Fouad Twal said. "It is an act is against the law, against justice and against humanity, against any ideology upon which peace can be built and increases segregation and hate."

The house, built before the 1967 occupation, was located 150 metres from the check-point, at the foot of Tantur hill, near the illegal Jewish settlement of Gilo.

The family of 14 that lived in the house which belonged to the Latin Patriarchate, said: "They turned up at 5 in the morning. They forced us to go out of our house. They took our cell phones away and forbad us to let anyone know. We stood there and watched as the bulldozers demolished the house."

A Church spokesman said it was the first time the Jewish state had demolished property belonging to the church. "This is holy land and always will be, and the interior ministry, the municipality and Israeli organisations knew it belonged to the patriarchate."

He said the church would appeal to Israeli and international courts over the demolition and had already complained to the interior ministry and the municipality.

The Association for Civil Rights in Israel said today that the city was starting proceedings for the mass demolition of Palestinian homes in other parts of east Jerusalem.

"Over the past few days, hundreds of families in the Ras Hamis and Ras Shahada neighbourhoods received notices that the Jerusalem municipality has requested the issuance of demolition orders on their homes because they were built without legal permits," it said.

Palestinian-owned properties in Israeli-annexed East Jerusalem are routinely demolished by the Jerusalem municipality on the grounds of lacking the right permit - permits that are notoriously difficult to get.

Jerusalem municipality's spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment.