The Israeli occupation authorities have stepped up forced displacement in the occupied West Bank, issuing deportation orders to entire Bedouin communities east of Ramallah and escalating a policy of demolitions in occupied East Jerusalem.

The measures come amid a surge in settler violence against educational institutions and homes in Qalqilya in the Jordan Valley, further shrinking Palestinian living space under military occupation.

“Expulsion Zone”

On Sunday morning, Israeli forces attacked the Bedouin community of Abu Najeh al-Kaabneh in the village of Mugahir, east of Ramallah.

Local sources confirmed to the Wafa news agency that soldiers issued a military order requiring 40 residents of the community to demolish their houses and leave the area within 48 hours. The army declared the site a “military closed zone,” a tactic often used when clearing Palestinian land for settlement expansion.

In the raid, Israeli forces arrested three foreign solidarity activists who were trying to document deportation orders.

The deportations are part of a growing campaign of ethnic cleansing in the region. It comes after the complete displacement of the community of Shallal al-Auja, north of Jericho, ended on Saturday. After years of systematic harassment, the last three families in the community were forced to leave, marking the disappearance of a community that once housed 120 families.

Al Aqsa Mosque Provocation

In occupied East Jerusalem, Israel’s urban restriction policies continue to force Palestinians into displacement.

Yasser Maher Dana, a Palestinian resident of the Jabal Mukaber neighborhood, was forced to demolish his 100-square-meter (1,076-square-foot) home on Sunday. The building is located in the Sala district and is home to four family members.

Israeli authorities often force Palestinians in East Jerusalem to carry out their own demolition orders to avoid paying the exorbitant fees charged by municipal staff and troops when doing their own demolition. The demolitions were justified by a lack of building permits, which rights groups say are nearly impossible for Palestinians to obtain in the city.

Meanwhile, in Silwan, south of Al-Aqsa Mosque, the city government issued a demolition order on a home owned by the Taweil family and gave them 10 days to do so. The notice was issued three days before two houses of brothers in Wadi Kadum community were demolished.

Tensions also rose at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, where dozens of Israeli settlers attacked the mosque amid heavy police protection. According to the Jerusalem governorate, the incursion included settlers performing a provocative “wedding blessing” ceremony for the bride in the courtyard, which violated the status quo of the site.

Settlers attack schools and homes

In the northern Jordan Valley, Israeli settlers, backed by the military, disrupted classes at Mahler School.

Tubas’ education director, Azmi Balawneh, reported that settlers prevented teachers from going to the school, which serves children from disadvantaged Bedouin communities such as Hadidiya, Makul and Samra.

The harassment coincided with the establishment of a new illegal settlement in the al-Maleh area a week ago. In nearby Khirbet Samra, settlers set up a new tent on Sunday morning to seize more pastoral land.

Meanwhile, in the village of Falata, east of Qarqiliya, settlers from the illegal “Hawat Gilad” outpost attacked the home of Hijaz Yameen.

Yameen told Wafa that settlers threw bombs at his house and unleashed an attack dog on his family, trapping his wife and seven children inside.

“We live in a state of constant insecurity,” Yameen said, noting that this was the second attack in a week. “I’m afraid of leaving my wife and kids alone or sending them to school.”

military attacks and blockades

Israeli forces carried out multiple raids in the West Bank on Sunday, arresting at least four Palestinians. In Hebron, two brothers were arrested after their home was attacked. More arrests were reported in the village of Douma, south of Nablus, and in the town of Ubediya, east of Bethlehem.

In the northern city of Jenin, military vehicles attacked the city center and the Jabel Abu Dhuhair neighborhood. During the invasion, troops deliberately destroyed street vendor carts at the Roundabout Cinema, targeting the local economy.

Movement restrictions have also been significantly tightened. Israeli forces closed the main entrance to Turmus Aya north of Ramallah for a second day in a row and blocked the Atala military checkpoint since early morning, cutting off connections between the northern and central West Bank cities. According to the Colonization and Resistance Wall Commission, Israel currently operates 916 military checkpoints and gates throughout the West Bank.