Demolition orders issued for homes in Wadi Ara
Several residents of the Wadi Ara area receive demolition orders for illegally constructed homes; residents vow to fight the demolitions by all means necessary: 'We'll sacrifice our lives for our homes.'
Residents who received the demolition orders have threatened to defend their homes with their bodies and are calling on the government to rescind the demolition orders.
"Three days ago we received two demolition orders, one for me and one for my brother," said Ahmed Said Agbaria. "The order stated that there will be no appeal. It can't be that after everything that happened in Qalansawe and Umm al-Hiran, they still plan on moving forward with demolishing our houses, which we put so much into."
"The government is doing us a great injustice," he continued. "I call on all Arab citizens, Knesset members and the High Follow-Up Committee for Arab Citizens to intensify the struggle so that homes won't be destroyed."
"Because of what is happening to us we can't sleep or work, we're constantly in fear," Agbaria added.
"This is a racist government that is trying to take revenge on the Arab sector at any cost," said Abdallah Mahameed, a resident of Wadi Ara.
"This time, we won't stay quiet; we will fight with all of our strength, even if we lose our lives. This is the only thing left to us and we won't hesitate to take these steps. We'll sacrifice our lives for our homes."
Joint List MK Yousef Jabareen, who lives in Umm al-Fahm, added, "In recent weeks we have demonstrated against demolitions in Arab communities. We want to present an alternative voice. Netanyahu is leading our two peoples to destruction using racist policies and annexation laws of all kinds, and we are warning the Israeli public against disaster. We offer the public an alternative to hate, incitement and the divisiveness of Netanyahu and his government. An alternative based on equality, coexistence and respect for all citizens. Our demonstrations are a point of light in Netanyahu's destructive radicalization."
In response to requests for a comment, the Finance Ministry responded that the homes were illegally built.
