Published on 15th February 2015

600 Palestinian-owned structures were demolished in the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 2014, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the occupied Palestinian territory. Of these, 242 were residential and 358 livelihood or other structures.

16 percent of demolitions occurred in East Jerusalem, 7 percent in the Jerusalem governorate (Jerusalem periphery/E1 settlement plan area) and 41 percent in the Jordan Valley. 

As a direct result of these demolitions, 1,215 persons were displaced, 54 percent of whom were children. 42 percent of displacement occurred in the Jordan Valley, 17 percent in East Jerusalem and 14 percent in the Jerusalem governorate.

These numbers represent a 10 percent decrease in demolitions and a 10 percent increase in people displaced by demolition when comparing 2013 to 2014. The UN postulates that the increase in displacement is related to the social dynamics of the communities duffering the majority of mass home demolitions in 2014, i.e., the larger family size of Bedouin and herding communities in Area C.