Israeli forces demolish 12 homes in West Bank village, leaving 70 homeless

September 4, 2026 at 11:32 PM2 min

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Israeli forces demolished all 12 homes in Khirbet al-Tabban, a village in the southern West Bank's Masafer Yatta region, on Wednesday, leaving about 70 people homeless. The demolition also destroyed most of the community's other structures, including water sources and sanitation facilities. Villagers have already begun to rebuild and vow to remain on their land despite the destruction.

Key Facts

Israeli forces demolished all 12 homes in Khirbet al-Tabban on Wednesday, leaving about 70 people homeless.
The demolition also destroyed most of the community's other structures, including water sources and sanitation facilities.
Nidal Younis, head of the Masafer Yatta Council, described the demolition as 'wiping the village off the face of the earth'.
Villagers have already begun to rebuild, and Nasser Mahmoud Obeid said Israeli forces ordered residents to 'get out by force' when they arrived on Wednesday morning.

The Demolition

On Wednesday, Israeli forces arrived unannounced in Khirbet al-Tabban, a small village in the southern West Bank's Masafer Yatta region, and demolished all of its 12 homes. The demolition also destroyed most of the community's other structures, leaving about 70 people homeless. Nidal Younis, head of the Masafer Yatta Council, described the demolition as 'wiping the village off the face of the earth'. Israel justified the demolition by saying the buildings were unauthorised, but it is almost impossible for Palestinians in Area C of the occupied West Bank to get authorisation.

Villagers' Response

Nasser Mahmoud Obeid, one of the Khirbet al-Tabban villagers, said Israeli forces ordered the residents to 'get out by force' when they arrived on Wednesday morning. Despite the destruction, villagers have already begun to rebuild, and Younis insisted that the villagers will not leave. Younis said the residents' immediate priorities are shelter, drinking water and sanitation facilities, warning that tents will not be sufficient against the strong winds and cold expected in the next few months. He also expressed fear that what happened in Khirbet al-Tabban is likely to be repeated in other Masafer Yatta villages, following a 2022 Israeli court decision to allow the displacement of residents from the area after Israel designated it a military firing zone decades earlier.