Palestinian families hurriedly dragged refrigerators and sofas out of the houses before Israeli bulldozers, guarded by soldiers, began knocking down the walls. The families said they had received notices months ago that the houses would be demolished, but had not known when the work would begin.
A total of 22 homes were to be destroyed Sunday, all because they allegedly were built without permits, said Talia Somech, a spokeswoman for the army's Civil Administration. Some had already been completed and others were still under construction, Palestinians in the area said.
Israel has been tearing down dozens of Palestinian homes in recent months. They include homes built without permits as well as houses belonging to militants involved in violence against Israel.
Yakub Sultan was building one of the houses for his son, who is to be married soon.
"The Israeli government and (Prime Minister) Ariel Sharon (news - web sites) are destroying all our dreams by demolishing houses," Sultan said as the bulldozers knocked down concrete walls.
Palestinian Cabinet Minister Saeb Erekat said the demolitions were part of Sharon's "policy of expanding settlements and putting obstacles in the way of future peace."
Palestinians say Israel's stringent permit policy can make it virtually impossible to build new houses.
The houses demolished Sunday were located not far from two recent attacks on Israelis. In one of them, on Nov. 15, a total of 12 security force members were killed, and a Jewish settler was killed in the other one last month.
Hebron is divided between Israeli and Palestinian sections and is a frequent flashpoint for violence. Israeli troops have taken hold of the Palestinian-controlled section at various times during the past 28 months of fighting, most recently since the November attack.
On Saturday, Israeli troops shot and killed an armed Palestinian as he approached the soldiers at a border crossing with Egypt in the southern Gaza Strip (news - web sites).
According to the Israeli military, the troops at the Rafah border crossing opened fire when they saw the gunman nearing them with an AK-47 assault rifle. The gunman had several magazines of ammunition, the army added.
The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine said a member of its military wing, 19-year-old Tamer Khoder, carried out the attack.
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