Zionist forces demolish West Bank homes, displacing 176 Palestinians

Israeli forces have demolished dozens of homes and other structures in Janba, a Palestinian village in the southern occupied West Bank, displacing 176 people, according to Israeli rights group B’Tselem.

Military bulldozers and soldiers entered Janba in the Masafer Yatta area south of al-Khalil, demolishing 24 residential structures, 16 agricultural buildings, 16 solar panels and 14 water tanks, according to B’Tselem.

B’Tselem stated that the expulsion of communities forms part of a broader mechanism of ethnic cleansing and territorial takeover being employed by Israel.

The group said 85 children were among those displaced.

Janba resident Najah Jabarin told Middle East Eye that her family had lost their home, including the kitchen, sheep shed and bread oven, leaving them with nothing.

Jabarin said her family of 11 had no other place to go but planned to rebuild their home and stay in the area.

The demolitions come amid an intensifying campaign by regime forces to destroy Palestinian homes and infrastructure in Masafer Yatta.

On September 2, Israeli forces demolished most of Khirbet al-Taban, a herding hamlet in the South Hebron Hills, destroying 12 homes that had sheltered about 70 people, including 28 children.

A week later, all five homes in Khirbet al-Fakhit, another Palestinian herding hamlet, were demolished, displacing 32 residents. Livestock pens, water infrastructure, solar panels and agricultural facilities were also destroyed.

Much of Masafer Yatta has been designated by Israel as a “firing zone” since the 1980s, subjecting Palestinian residents to demolition orders and restrictions on construction.

Nu’man Jabarin, a resident of Janba born in 1969, said he had lived in the same cave as his parents and grandparents.

He said the destruction had left him without any belongings, including a bathroom, kitchen, room or cave.

Residents said Israeli forces also sealed caves used to store food and clothing and shelter livestock.

Janba is one of 13 Palestinian communities situated in an area Israel designated in the 1980s as “Firing Zone 918,” a military training area.

According to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), about 1,200 Palestinians live across the communities.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said the regime’s borders would expand once its wars on several fronts end.

In May 2022, Israel’s Supreme Court upheld the military’s position on the designated firing zone, clearing the way for demolition orders against Palestinian residents to proceed.

B’Tselem characterized the demolitions as part of an Israeli “Elimination Project” in the occupied West Bank, alleging that Israeli forces and settlers have displaced more than 4,800 Palestinians from their homes and communities since October 2023.

The Palestinian Commission Against the Wall and Settlements reported that 492 demolitions were carried out across the occupied West Bank between January and August 2026, affecting 1,060 structures.

UN data showed that more than 1,600 Palestinians had been displaced by demolitions across the occupied territories as of September 23.