After a two-day standoff, staff from the Israeli municipality of West Jerusalem, backed by a large police force, evicted the family of Mahmoud Salhia from their East Jerusalem homes.

The incident happened in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood on Wednesday 19 January.

Witnesses said police detained the family and other supporters before demolishing two houses occupied by the family. The action is reported to have displaced 13 residents, most of them children.

Police used force to enter the home, after cordoning off the area from 3am, before bulldozers moved in to demolish the buildings.

The all-Israeli municipality has been trying to evict the Palestinian families from their homes for some time, claiming it wants to use the land for public service, such as building a school.

The families accused the municipality of seeking to use the land to expand a nearby Jewish settlement at their expense.

On Monday, an attempt by the municipality and police to remove the families failed after the homeowners said they might blow themselves up and destroy the homes, where they lived for decades, if police evicted them.

After that, the municipality was able to destroy some neighbouring structures -- a family business and a parking lot -- but not the two homes. Until Wednesday.

RESTRICTION SUMMARY: Jerusalem, 19 January 2022. Members of the Palestinian Salhiya family inspect the damage to the area surrounding their home as they protest their eviction by Israeli Police.

STORYLINE:

After a two-day standoff, staff from the Israeli municipality of West Jerusalem backed by a large police force broke early this morning into the house of Mahmoud Salhia, in Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem, beat and detained the entire family members and several other supporters before demolishing two houses for the family, displacing 13 people, most of them children, according to witnesses.

They said the police cordoned off the entire Sheikh Jarrah area starting at 3:00 o’clock local time, preventing anyone from reaching it. Then broke into the Salhia houses, beating everyone in their way and forcing them to leave the houses on a rainy and cold morning before municipality bulldozers levelled the two houses.

The all-Israeli municipality has been trying to evict the Palestinian families from their homes claiming it wants to use the land for public service, such as building a school. The families accused the municipality of seeking to use the land to expand a nearby Jewish settlement at their expense.

On Monday, an attempt by the municipality and police to remove the families have failed after the homeowners vowed to blow themselves up and destroy the houses, where they lived for decades, if the police evict them.

The municipality ended up demolishing a family business and a parking lot but not the houses until it came back this morning while the family was asleep, broke into the houses, removed the people inside by force and demolished them.

Footage by/APAwire