SALFIT, Palestine

The Israeli army on Thursday demolished the house of a Palestinian accused of carrying out a knife attack in the West Bank last year amid military escalation in the occupied territory.

According to witnesses, Israeli forces evacuated the occupants of the 3-story house and detonated the building in Salfit city in the northern West Bank.

The house belonged to Omar Awdah, whom Israel accused of carrying out a stabbing attack last August in which two Israelis were killed and two others injured in the city of Holon near Tel Aviv. Awdah was shot dead by Israeli forces.

For years, Israel has pursued a policy of home demolitions as a punitive measure against families of Palestinians accused of involvement in attacks against Israeli targets.

Thursday’s home demolition came as the Israeli army continued its deadly raids in the northern West Bank, where at least 60 people were killed and thousands displaced since last month.

The army sent military reinforcements to the Jenin refugee camp as bulldozers continued to demolish Palestinian homes in the area, witnesses said.

Tension has been running high across the occupied West Bank, where at least 920 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 7,000 others injured in attacks by the Israeli army and illegal settlers since the start of the Gaza war on Oct. 7, 2023, according to the Health Ministry.

In July, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s long-standing occupation of Palestinian territories illegal, calling for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.