On May 12, 2026, bulldozers from Israel’s Civil Administration, the military body that controls Palestinian life in the occupied West Bank, demolished an estimated 14 businesses in the al-Mushtal area in the Palestinian town of al-‘Izariyya, southeast of Jerusalem.1 Some shop owners had already taken the painful step of demolishing their own hard-won businesses, two days before, to avoid fees in the tens of thousands of dollars. Israeli officials levy these fees after they destroy Palestinian homes and businesses that the military has ordered removed.2

The demolitions were carried out by the Civil Administration despite a court-ordered stay. Palestinians believe that the Israeli military will come soon to finish destroying the rest of the approximately 50 shops in the area that have demolition orders, as the far-right Israeli government tries to implement its agenda before the October 2026 elections.

The demolition orders targeted dozens of businesses—three car washes, garages, a gas station, minimarkets, restaurants, a dental clinic, toy shops, and vegetable stands—all built in 2011. The structures were located in Area C of the West Bank, regions under Israeli civil and security control according to the Oslo Accords, and ordered demolished for being built without the proper permits.3 The Israeli military oversees planning and building in Area C and almost never approves permits for Palestinian construction in the area.

A village council head from the area said that more than 200 families would lose their livelihoods from the demolitions.4

Israeli officials informed the shop owners on May 6, 2026, that they planned to demolish the business complex on May 10, ordering them to vacate their business premises.5

Also known as the biblical site of Bethany, the town of al-‘Izariyya lies outside Jerusalem’s municipal boundaries and the Separation Wall but is part of the Palestinian governorate of Jerusalem and has always been linked to the city’s urban community.

While the Society of St. Yves, a Catholic human rights organization supported by the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, secured an interim injunction from Israel’s Supreme Court on May 9, freezing the demolitions of a number of homes, the military ignored the order and dispatched its bulldozers.6 Additionally, a shop owner also secured his own court injunction pausing the demolition of his stores for 20 days.

Human rights groups say the large-scale demolition is part of Israeli plans to begin construction of the controversial “Sovereignty Road,” referred to by Palestinians as the “Apartheid Road,” between al-‘Izariyya and al-Za‘ayim. The road will separate Israeli and Palestinian traffic and result in the closure of the entire Ma‘ale Adumim and E1 Development Plan area—about 3 percent of the West Bank—to Palestinians. All of the demolished buildings are located along the highway’s planned route.7

Peace Now says that Israel has not yet published detailed maps of the plans because the route is being authorized as a security necessity. Parts of the route run through Area B of the West Bank, zones where the Oslo Accords did not give Israel planning authority. Israel is circumventing this legal issue by declaring the road a “security road.”8