Israeli authorities have ordered the demolition of a soccer field in a crowded refugee camp in the West Bank, with residents saying it will eliminate one of the few spaces where local Palestinian children are able to run and play.

“If the field gets demolished, this will destroy our dreams and our future. We cannot play any other place but this field. The camp does not have spaces,” said Rital Sarhan, 13, who plays on a girls’ soccer team in the Aida refugee camp near Bethlehem.

The military issued a demolition order for the soccer field on December 31, saying it was built illegally in an area that abuts the concrete security barrier wall that Israel built in the West Bank.

“Along the security fence, a seizure order and a construction prohibition order are in effect; therefore, the construction in the area was carried out unlawfully,” the military said in a statement.

Mohammad Abu Srour, an administrator at Aida Youth Center, which manages the field, said the military gave them seven days to demolish the field.

The military often orders Palestinians to carry out demolitions themselves. If they do not act, the military steps in to........

© The Times of Israel