On Monday, Israeli occupation authorities launched a large-scale demolition campaign that targeted at least 16 homes in Al-Surra village, located in the Naqab (Negev) region of southern Palestine (occupied since 1948). The operation is part of a systematic policy targeting unrecognised Palestinian villages, reflecting an escalating campaign of forced displacement and uprooting of Indigenous populations from their ancestral lands.
The demolition followed a ruling issued last Thursday by the Be’er Sheva District Court, ordering the evacuation of the village and the demolition of its homes, without providing alternative housing or basic services—a blatant violation of international standards on the right to housing and the prohibition of forced evictions without adequate legal and humanitarian safeguards.
Al-Surra is home to approximately 1,500 Palestinian citizens from the Al-Azazmeh tribe and is located in a severely marginalised area lacking basic infrastructure. Despite existing since before the 1948 Nakba, the village remains unrecognised by Israeli authorities and has faced ongoing demolition threats for decades.
According to Suleiman Al-Hawashleh, Director-General of the Regional Council for Unrecognised Villages, Israeli police forces surrounded the area early in the morning, prevented residents from approaching, and created an atmosphere of fear and intimidation.
Al-Hawashleh added that some residents had previously been forced to self-demolish their homes to avoid harsh fines and legal prosecution.
Council data indicates that this is only the beginning: more than 200 homes are expected to be demolished in the coming two weeks, effectively erasing the entire village of Al-Surra and forcibly displacing its population without compensation or fair resettlement.
This escalation coincides with the Israeli government’s announcement of new settlement projects in the Naqab, exposing the colonial nature of its official policy towards Palestinian citizens within Israel—who are being treated as a demographic threat to be contained and diminished.
The events unfolding in Al-Surra are not isolated, but part of Israel’s broader settler-colonial agenda targeting Palestinians across all areas of historic Palestine. These demolitions and forced evictions violate the right to adequate housing, as enshrined in international human rights law, particularly the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
They also constitute a direct breach of international humanitarian law, notably Article 17 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits forced displacement of civilians during peacetime or war. Moreover, this conduct reflects institutionalised racial discrimination specifically targeting Palestinian citizens of Israel.
In light of this dangerous situation, there is an urgent need for international action to halt the demolitions, protect unrecognised Palestinian villages, and pressure Israeli authorities to end forced displacement policies, recognise existing villages, and provide essential services and infrastructure as required by international legal and humanitarian frameworks.
