On Tuesday 1st January, Palestinian official news agency, WAFA, reported that workers from the Israeli West Jerusalem municipality Tuesday demolished a Palestinian home in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Issawieh under the pretext it was built without a permit, according to the house owner. Ahmad Issawi, 40, told WAFA that the workers brought a bulldozer and proceeded to demolish the 145-square meter house, which was still under construction. A police force provided cover for the bulldozer during the demolition. Issawi said he has been living for 10 years in a small house with his wife and three children and has wanted to build a bigger house for them. However, he added, the West Jerusalem municipality refused to give him a permit to build on his land claiming it wants to turn that area into a public park. Issawi is brother of Samer Issawi, who is being held in Israeli jails and has been on hunger strike since August 1 demanding his release. Israeli police has been targeting the Issawi family for a long time, raiding their home at night and arresting brothers and sisters of Samer in what the family says is obvious revenge tactics.