Destruction of villages after occupation and depopulation to prevent return of the refugees. As per the field research of 418 villages conducted in 1987-1990 and reported by Ghazi Falah, the level of destruction is shown in Col. 19 and summarized in Table-6.
Table-6: Level of Destruction of Villages
| Destruction Reference |
Description |
Number of Villages |
Percentage(%) |
| 1 |
Complete obliteration |
81 |
19.4 |
| 2 |
Destruction, rubble identified |
140 |
33.5 |
| 3 |
Demolition, standing walls |
60 |
14.3 |
| 4 |
Most, not all, houses demolished one house standing |
74 |
17.7 |
| 5 |
Most demolished, up to 2 Jewish families live there |
17 |
4.1 |
| 6 |
More than 2 Jewish families occupy Houses |
35 |
8.4 |
| 7 |
Inaccessible |
11 |
2.6 |
Cactus fences are still visible today in most village sites. Palestinian towns were not destroyed; instead, they were occupied by Jewish immigrants. Remaining Palestinians were not allowed to repair or improve their property.