Sarah Abdallah, a Lebanese activist and commentator made the revelation in a post on her Twitter account on Sunday.
“1,500 Palestinians in Silwan are being ordered by Israel to demolish their OWN HOMES or they’ll have to pay for them to be demolished,” the activist said, adding that the plan is aimed to make way for Israeli settlers to “build a park on the rubble of their houses.”
Abdallah further asserted that the measure is a form of “ethnic cleansing”, urging the world not to overlook the plight of Palestinians.
Throughout the years, Israel has frequently demolished Palestinian homes, claiming that the structures have been built without permits, which are nearly impossible to obtain.
The Tel Aviv regime even orders the Palestinian owners to tear down their own homes or pay the demolition costs to the municipality.
At the same time, Israel has expanded its illegal settlements for Israelis in occupied Palestinian territories, which are all illegal under international law.
Since January, the Israeli regime has forced more than 20 Palestinians in the occupied Jerusalem al-Quds to raze their homes.
More than 600,000 Israelis live in over 230 settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories of the West Bank and East Jerusalem al-Quds.
All Israeli settlements are illegal under international law as they are built on occupied land. The UN Security Council has condemned Israel’s settlement activities in the occupied territories in several resolutions.
The latest development follows massive outcry over planned expulsions from Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in occupied East Jerusalem al-Quds, where protests against the decision led to Israeli violence against Palestinians and the 11-day aggression against the besieged Gaza Strip.
Silwan home to about 33,000 Palestinians, is located outside the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem al-Quds and its sacred sites.
Israeli officials have been moving Jewish extremists to the neighborhood since the 1980s, and currently several hundred settlers live there in heavily protected settlement compounds.
This has resulted in numerous human rights violations, including the forced eviction and displacement of Palestinian residents.
The Silwan properties are claimed by Israeli extremists backed by Ateret Cohanim, a right-wing foundation that works to strengthen the Jewish presence in East Jerusalem al-Quds.