US says West Bank demolitions ‘damage Israel’s standing in the world’

The United States condemned the demolition of Palestinian activist Fakhri Abu Diab’s home in occupied East Jerusalem, US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on Wednesday.

“We believe that demolition not only obviously damages his home, and his family, and the lives that they have built there, but the entire community who live in fear that their homes may be next,” said Miller.

“He has been an outspoken community leader, including against demolitions, and now his family has been displaced,” Miller added.

The home – which is close to the Al-Aqsa Mosque – was demolished to make way for a planned biblical theme park in the neighbourhood of Silwan, in occupied East Jerusalem.

“These acts … damage Israel’s standing in the world, and they make it ultimately more difficult for us to accomplish all of the things we are trying to accomplish that would ultimately be in the interest of the Israeli people,” Miller added.