BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- A senior UN official on Wednesday condemned Israel's eviction of Palestinians from their homes in Beit Hanina, East Jerusalem.

"Evictions of Palestinians from their homes and properties in occupied territory contravene international law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention, and should cease," said UN humanitarian coordinator Maxwell Gaylard in a statement.

Israeli police on Wednesday evicted a Palestinian family from their home in Beit Hanina, shortly before Jewish settlers moved in.

Khaled Natsheh told the official PA news agency Wafa that Israeli police ordered him and his 10-member family to leave their home. Natsheh was taken to a police station while officers removed furniture and the family's belongings from his home, he said.

The Israeli daily The Jerusalem Post reported that 10 Jewish settlers with the right-wing Israel Land Fund moved into Natsheh's home.

The incident was the first eviction in the Palestinian neighborhood Beit Hanina, but settlers have taken over several homes in nearby Sheikh Jarrah.