How the US-Israel war in Iran is affecting Palestinians in the West Bank
In Al-Musaffah, settlers have moved against the community's oldest spaces. "We have an old cemetery in the town, about 150 to 170 years old," Zaher told us. "Recently Israeli forces practically took it from us completely. Only a very small part is left for us to bury our dead." The cemetery has since been classified as government land; one of several legal mechanisms used to transfer Palestinian land to Israeli control.Beneath it all runs a deeper fear, not just of violence, but of losing their homes entirely. "The biggest fear is demolition," says Zaher. "There isn't a week or 20 days that pass without demolitions." In Al Jiftlik, Zeina's own home has been under threat of demolition since Israel’s genocide in Gaza began. "You live every day feeling like they could come at any moment and force you out."Both Al-Musaffah and Al-Jiftlik sit within Area C, which covers more than 60% of the West Bank and remains under full Israeli military and civil control. Building permits for Palestinians in this area are almost impossible to obtain, and without one, any structure is vulnerable to demolition.In the first nine months of 2025 alone, Israeli authorities demolished 1,288 Palestinian structures in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, due to lack of permits; a 39% increase compared to the same period in 2024.
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