Israeli forces demolish five Palestinian buildings in West Bank town of Biddu, displacing over 100

Israeli forces demolished five Palestinian residential buildings in the occupied West Bank without warning on Thursday, displacing more than 100 people, according to residents and local officials.

Troops entered the town of Biddu, northwest of Jerusalem, in the early morning hours and ordered the occupants of 12 apartments to leave before tearing the structures down. Residents said soldiers fired stun grenades and tear gas at homeowners and blocked them from retrieving their belongings before the demolitions began.

Ahmad Abu Eid, who owns one of the destroyed homes, said the properties belonged to him, his sons and his daughter. He said the family was not given enough time to evacuate and lost access to furniture, clothing and personal possessions. His son Salman, a former prisoner released under last year's prisoner exchange deal and deported to Egypt, is the reason Abu Eid believes the demolition was an act of retaliation.

"What has happened to us is what happens to all Palestinians. We have no other land, and we will endure whatever they do to us," he told Middle East Eye.

Israeli soldiers said the buildings lacked construction permits. The homes stood in Area C, the part of the West Bank that remains under full Israeli administrative and security control under the 1995 Oslo agreement. Area A is run by the Palestinian Authority, while Area B is under PA administrative control and Israeli security control. Israeli forces routinely demolish Palestinian structures in Area C over permit violations, though Palestinians are almost never granted the permits needed to build legally.

Salem Abu Eid, a member of the Biddu municipal council, said two of the demolished homes were not covered by judicial demolition orders, despite legal challenges filed with Israeli courts. He said the demolitions struck a residential complex housing nine families, and that Israeli authorities had issued stop-construction notices, rather than demolition orders, for more than 20 other homes in the town. Objections have been filed with the Israeli Civil Administration in Beit El, with several lawyers handling the cases.

He noted that the last demolition in Biddu took place several months ago, targeting a structure made of wood and tile along with the bulldozing of what is known as the municipal park. He added that Israel often cites proximity to the separation wall as justification, but the nearest of the targeted homes sits about 700 metres from the barrier. He called for official authorities to compensate the families and help provide alternative housing.

The Palestinian Authority's Jerusalem Governorate office condemned the demolitions and displacement as a dangerous escalation aimed at undermining the Palestinian presence on the outskirts of Jerusalem and a violation of international law, warning of consequences for families left homeless.

The office has documented a sharp rise in demolition and land-clearing operations in Jerusalem and its surroundings this year. In the first nine months of 2026 it recorded 427 operations, including 66 cases in which Palestinians were forced to demolish their own homes, 294 demolitions carried out with Israeli machinery and 32 land-levelling operations. A further 44 operations were recorded in October, bringing the total from January through the end of October to 471. The figures cover homes, other structures and land, not only residential properties.