RAMALLAH, The Israeli occupation’s District Court in Jerusalem today ordered the immediate demolition of a European-funded school in Ein Samiya community near Ramallah.
The Ein Samiya school was inaugurated in mid-January in coordination with the Palestinian Ministry of Education and with European funding.
Lawyers for the Jerusalem Legal Aid and Human Rights Center’s had submitted a petition on behalf of the land donor; a resident of Ramallah’s Kafr Malik town, against the court’s decision issued on April 28 to demolish the school.
The court’s judge gave the petitioners two options: either to carry out self-demolition on a specific date, or for the demolition to be carried out by the occupation’s bulldozers, in which case the petitioners will be forced to pay the inflated costs in addition to heavy fines and the court’s fees.
In February, representatives from the EU and like-minded countries visited the Ein Samiya community near Ramallah in light of the serious risk of demolition of the school, which provides access to education for children in Ein Samiya and neighboring herder communities.
Prior to the school’s construction, children faced the prospect of walking to the next closest school in Ras al Tin, about 9 km away, which also faces imminent risk of demolition by Israeli authorities. This lengthy journey left students vulnerable to harassment, particularly by settlers, since there is no public transportation servicing the community. This also heightened the risk of school dropout, particularly among girls, said the EU in a statement following the visit.
“Representatives from the EU and likeminded countries urge Israel to halt demolitions, evictions and confiscations on occupied Palestinian land, including of donor funded projects. The continuation of these policies violates international law, undermines the viability of the two-state solution and the prospect for a lasting peace in the region,” said the statement.
Source: Palestine News & Info Agency