Israel Tears Down EU-Funded Bedouin School for Fifth Time

Israeli authorities on Sunday tore down two E.U.-funded classrooms that were part of a school for Bedouins in Yehudah and Shomron because they were built illegally.

The two classrooms, which stood separately from the rest of the hilltop school, were demolished early in the morning by a work crew, while Israeli security officers closed off the area, according to residents of the Palestinian village Abu Nuwar.

It was the fifth time the school has been demolished since 2016, Palestinian officials said. Residents, with the help of non-government organizations and E.U. funding, reconstruct it each time.

“The building was built illegally and without the necessary permits. In addition, the enforcement was approved by the Supreme Court,” said a statement from Israel’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, the military-run authority that deals with Palestinian civilian issues.

Shadi Othman, head of media in the E.U. office in Yerushalayim, said that such demolitions are carried out over the protests of the E.U.