Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat has signed demolition papers for two trailers in east Jerusalem erected by the United Nation's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Israeli media reported Thursday.
The trailers are being used to house two Palestinian families whose homes were demolished due to unauthorized construction.
Tensions between OCHA, city officials and Israeli Foreign Ministry have heightened in recent months over this disputed case.
OCHA said the trailers were an "emergency solution" for the homeless families. They added that the trailers in the Beit Hanina neighborhood do not require a permit since they are not hooked to municipal utilities.
There are currently 270,000 Arab residents with Israeli IDs in the Jewish country, eligible to vote and receive proper services and utilities from the municipality.
According to OCHA coordinator Maxwell Gaylard, the Palestinians turned to them for help.
"We've been complaining to Israel about the policy of demolishing unauthorized houses in east Jerusalem and the West Bank, but nothing happens," he told The Jerusalem Post.
One of the 40-square-meter trailers houses the Salma family with its six members. Their house was demolished twice in December 2011 and January 2012.
The family members said that they, like many other Arabs, cannot get building permits as the city refuses to grant construction permits in the area.
However, the municipality and foreign ministry were furious with what they called OCHA's "unlawful" behavior.
"Israel is not a banana republic, but a state of law and order, " the municipality said in a statement.
"The UN can help advance the residents' quality of life in accordance with the law," it read.
The ministry also filed a complaint with the office of UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process about the incident.
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