JERUSALEM/RAMALLAH, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Israeli military said Tuesday that it killed a Palestinian militant after the man crossed the "Yellow Line" demarcation in the northern Gaza Strip.
In a statement, the military said the Palestinian approached the troops, "posing an imminent threat to their safety."
"Following the identification, the Israel Air Force eliminated the terrorist in order to remove the threat," it said.
The military stated that troops of the Southern Command will remain deployed in Gaza, citing the October 2025 ceasefire agreement, which established the "Yellow Line" demarcating Israeli-controlled areas.
Also on Tuesday, Israeli authorities demolished four Palestinian homes in the West Bank and closed a community association in Jerusalem, according to Palestinian sources.
The Palestinian Liberation Organization's Commission Against the Wall and Settlements said that Israeli bulldozers demolished a home in the town of Silat al-Harithiya, west of Jenin, after evacuating neighboring houses.
In Nablus, Israeli authorities demolished a two-story house, according to its owner Yasser al-Saber, who told reporters that his family was forced to evacuate three weeks earlier after receiving a demolition order from an Israeli court.
In a related incident, Palestinian security sources said Israeli forces demolished a two-story residential building in the town of al-Khader near Bethlehem, citing the lack of a building permit.
Meanwhile, Israeli forces demolished a house in the town of Qarawat Bani Hassan, west of Salfit, after storming the area with several military vehicles, according to a statement issued by the governorate.
The Commission Against the Wall and Settlements said the demolitions were part of a "systematic policy" aimed at weakening the Palestinian presence in towns and villages and expanding settlements.
In Jerusalem, Israeli authorities closed the headquarters of the Burj al-Luqluq Community Association in the Old City for six months.
In a statement, the Jerusalem Governorate of the Palestinian Authority described the move as a "dangerous escalation," calling on the international community to take actions to protect Palestinian institutions and residents' rights to education, recreation and community services. ■
