1st lawsuit filed against Israeli settlers for vandalisation

RAMALLAH: For the first time since the establishment of the Palestinian Authority (PA) in 1994, a Palestinian man in the West Bank has filed a lawsuit against Israeli settlers who "vandalised" his home.

Muntaser Mansour, the 30-year-old owner of a 170-square-meter home under construction in the village of Burin, south of the West Bank city of Nablus, told Xinhua news agency on Monday that he demands compensation for the damage caused by the Israeli settlers.

"The lawsuit includes a claim for compensation for the material loss and moral damage caused by the settlers' demolition of the house built in Area B," Mansour added.

Under the Oslo peace accords signed between Israel and the Palestinians in 1993, the West Bank was divided into three areas: Area A under the full control of the PA, Area B under joint Israeli-Palestinian control, and Area C under full Israeli control.

Mansour said that he demands compensation also because he has been deprived of the rights to build the house for eight years which forced his family to live in a rented house.

Mansour, whose house is located in an area between two Israeli settlements, accused the Israeli authorities and settlers of preventing him from rebuilding his house in a bid to link the two settlements.

Since the 1967 Middle East war, Israel has built dozens of settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, which have been one of the major disputes between Israel and the PA that has stalled the peace process. (IANS)

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