UK RABBIS DENOUNCE ISRAEL’S ‘UNJUST’ DEMOLITION OF PALESTINIAN VILLAGE

London, 12 Shawwal 1436/28 July 2015 (MINA) – A group of 30 rabbis has criticized the “unjust” demolition of Palestinian homes in the West Bank in a letter to Israel’s outgoing ambassador to the UK.

The British Friends of Rabbis for Human Rights spoke out against the impending destruction of a small Palestinian community in Susiya in the West Bank, which would leave 450 residents homeless.

Among the signatories were senior rabbis from synagogues across the UK, but mostly from the Liberal and Reform movements. Rusian RT media quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.

The United Nations Development and Humanitarian Coordinator for Palestine has warned that if Israel goes ahead with the demolition of Susiya it will constitute a violation of international humanitarian law.

In an open letter to Israel’s outgoing Ambassador to the UK Daniel Taub, a group of rabbis asked the diplomat to “do what you can” to stop the destruction of Palestinian homes in the West Bank village.

The signatories, including senior rabbis from a range of synagogues, said they were writing to the ambassador out “out of deep commitment to Israel and to Judaism.”

They noted in their letter that it was recently Tisha b’av, a religious day marking the destruction of the first and second temples in Jerusalem.

“[The] injustice of destroying the homes of the villagers of Susiya therefore feels especially poignant,” the rabbis said.

In May 2015 Israel’s High Court approved a request by the Israeli Civil Administration – a military branch responsible for governing the West Bank – for the demolition of Susiya.

Villagers said they had applied for permission to build permanent structures at the barren site in 2012, but the Civil Administration rejected the plans and issued demolition orders for the whole village.(T/R03/R04)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)