The demolition by Israeli authorities of a residential building in East Jerusalem on Tuesday displaced the largest number of people in one demolition since 2009, said a United Nations (UN) spokesman on the same day.
Partners of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that 69 people were living in the structure in the At Tur area of East Jerusalem, according to Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the UN secretary-general.
"[I] also want to flag the situation in the occupied West Bank, where humanitarian partners say that 69 Palestinians, over half of them children, were displaced today after Israeli authorities demolished the residential building in the At Tur area of East Jerusalem. It is the highest number of people displayed in a single demolition in East Jerusalem since we began keeping records in 2009," he said.
The UN and its partners visited the area, and families there said that Israeli forces had prevented them from retrieving their belongings, which were left buried under the rubble, according to the spokesman.
The OCHA said its partners assessed people's immediate needs and determined they were eligible to receive rent support and essential items.
Its partners provided emergency shelter, essential items and psychosocial support, according to the OCHA.
Largest number of people displaced in single demolition in East Jerusalem: UN
