Chicago – May 17, 2026
Israeli bulldozers demolished dozens of Palestinian-owned shops in the town of Al-Eizariya, southeast of Jerusalem, earlier this week. The demolitions were carried out as part of preparations for a road project linked to nearby Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Israeli authorities said the structures — including car washes, vegetable stalls, and scrap-metal shops — had been built without permits and obstructed planned infrastructure work. The Israeli military body COGAT stated that the road is intended to improve transportation for Palestinian communities.
Palestinian officials and anti-settlement groups dispute that explanation. They argue the road project is tied to development in the controversial E1 corridor, an area Israel has long sought to expand with settlement infrastructure. Critics say the plan would divert Palestinian traffic away from highways used by Israeli settlers and further fragment the West Bank geographically.
According to reports, around 50 shops were destroyed, affecting the livelihoods of more than 200 families. Lawyers representing shop owners appealed the demolition orders up to Israel’s Supreme Court, but the demolitions proceeded.
The E1 area has been a longstanding focus of international concern because development there could complicate efforts to establish a contiguous Palestinian state between major West Bank cities such as Ramallah and Bethlehem.
