A/HRC/22/63 64. Seized lands are placed within the jurisdictional boundaries of local and regional settlement councils, used not only for urbanization but also as buffer zones surrounding settlements or turned into recreational and nature areas to which Palestinians have no access. 65. While the issue is critical throughout the West Bank, the mission notes the large number of demolitions, demolition orders, forced evictions and ―relocation‖ plans in zones identified for the consolidation of settlements, including around Bethlehem and the E-1 project, aimed at creating an urban continuum between East Jerusalem and Maale Adumim. In this area, the Jahalin Bedouin community in Khan Al-Akhmar, which in the past has experienced several demolitions, lives under the threat of forcible displacement. ―Relocation‖ plans are currently under discussion, including to a location near a landfill site where, in 1996, Bedouins had already been relocated in connection with earlier settlement expansions. 66. Bedouin communities in general are particularly vulnerable to displacement and dispossession. Eighty per cent of them live in the Jordan Valley, the Dead Sea area and around Hebron, constituting the majority of the population in closed military training and firing zones. Many of these communities have already experienced multiple displacements. Many are food insecure, do not have access to basic services, and are not connected to the electricity grid, the road network or water systems. More than 90 per cent face water scarcity, living with less than one-quarter of the minimum standards set by the World Health Organization (WHO).39 The Israeli army routinely demolishes their shelters and property, including those provided by or built with the assistance of aid agencies and international donors. In the South Hebron hills, eight villages are at risk of eviction to make way for a new firing zone. 67. The processes of dispossession and displacement in the vicinity of settlements and the seam zone include preventing access of Palestinians to their agricultural lands, the takeover and demolition of springs and wells, and movement restrictions. Settler violence and intimidation also play a significant role. 68. In East Jerusalem, multiple factors, such as discriminatory building regulations, the large number of demolition orders, residence permit restrictions, the acute housing shortage and violence and intimidation from settlers, put enormous pressures on the city‘s Palestinian population. Cases of forced eviction in East Jerusalem, such as in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood, were also reported to the mission, including following successful appeals by settler organizations, some of which linked to Jewish property claims based on their pre-1948 ownership. Numerous testimonies spoke of settlers taking over individual houses inside the Old City. 69. Absence of proof of registration (land registration was discontinued by military order in 1968) makes it extremely difficult for Palestinians to obtain recognition of tenure or permits. Besides, Palestinians are excluded from consultative decision-making processes and are not represented in the special planning committees, which are made up of settlers and are entitled to issue and enforce building permits. 70. Testimonies confirmed that building permits are rarely if ever granted; in the past 20 years, 94 per cent of permit applications were denied. Building without a permit is an offence under military orders, and the execution of a demolition order is accompanied by a large fine. The mission heard in this regard about ―self-demolitions‖, namely, of residents 39 Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, ―The Humanitarian Impact of Israeli-declared ‗Firing Zones‘ in the West Bank‖, August 2012, available from www.ochaopt.org/documents/ocha_opt_firing_zone_factsheet_august_2012_english.pdf. 15