seventeen years after the inhabitants of Homesh, Sa-Noor, Kadim and Ganim were forced out of their homes by the Israeli government as part of the disengagement, the Knesset voted to repeal the part of the disengagement law that banned the entry of Israelis into the territory.
Settler leaders and the right-wing MK welcomed the move, calling it a “first step” towards the re-establishment of the four vacated settlements.
“We are now starting to plan the re-establishment of [Homesh] Re-establishment of yeshiva and destroyed settlements. With Israel behind us, God willing there is room here for many more new settlements,” Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria regional council, who was once a resident of Sa-Nur, said during the ceremony in Homesh on Tuesday.
“We are now starting to plan the re-establishment of [Homesh] Re-establishment of yeshiva and destroyed settlements. Israel is behind us, God willing there is room for many more new settlements.”
yosi dagan
Otzma Yehudit MK limor son har-melechThe woman, who lives in Homesh and lost her husband Shuli in a terrorist attack near the settlement, stressed that the government should not stop at repealing the law and resettle the vacated settlements.
Har-Melech said, “The racist and discriminatory law that barred Jews from entering the settlements of northern Samaria will indeed be lifted today, but we must make sure it does not end there.” “Our task now is to look after and ensure that the four settlements vacated by the deportations will be resettled in the near future.
“There is also a need for a government settlement plan for the remaining vast areas of northern Samaria, which would create a strategic settlement sequence and ensure Jewish control over this land,” MK said. Har-Melek additionally called for the re-establishment of Gush Katif settlements located in the Gaza Strip.
“I am saying here today in a clear voice: Our vision is to completely repeal the disenfranchisement law and return all the settlements that were evacuated and destroyed, the four settlements in northern Samaria and Gush twenty-two settlements in the Katif region. It is an inseparable part of the Land of Israel, our homeland, and we have the right and duty to settle there.”
So what exactly does the repeal of the disengagement law do?
The repeal of the Disengagement Law only removes the ban on Israeli citizens entering the territory and does not automatically approve the resettlement of the four vacated settlements.
The status of the land will now be the same as the rest of Area C, meaning that any further restrictions or permits regarding entry and construction in the area will depend on the IDF and the government.
The four evacuated settlements are located in areas surrounded by Palestinian towns and far from other Israeli settlements, meaning that protecting any future settlements in these locations would present a significant challenge to the defense establishment.
Sa-Nour and Homesh are located between Burqa, Silat ed-Dahr and Jabba, north of Nablus, while Ganim and Kadim are located right next to Jenin, which is a hotspot for Palestinian militant groups.
On Wednesday, after a diplomatic furore, the office Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stressed that the government does not intend to establish new settlements in northern Samaria. The office said that repealing the law was meant to “end the discriminatory and humiliating law banning Jews from living in Northern Samaria.”
any attempt to restore homesh There will also be an additional hurdle to jump.
While Sa-Nur, Kadim and Ganim were located on state land, Homesh is located on land that is considered privately owned Palestinian land, making it difficult for settlers to resettle there.
In 1978, the area where Homesh would eventually sit was confiscated by a military order with the stated purpose of using the land for security reasons, however instead the land was used to establish a settlement. The settlement, Homesh, was evacuated in 2005 as part of the separation from Northern Samaria and the Gaza Strip.
In 2011, the head of Burka village and the Palestinians of the village, who have ownership records on the land where Homesh was located, filed a lawsuit in the High Court, asking for the confiscation order to be overturned and to be allowed to return to the farm. The demand was made. on the land in question.
During the proceedings, the military confiscation order and a separate order barring the entry of Palestinians were repealed and the trial canceled as the goal of the trial had been met.
Notwithstanding the revocation of the orders and recognition of the state’s status of the land as privately owned Palestinian propertyThe settlers have continued to run a yeshiva on the land for some time after the displacement.
Since its establishment, the yeshiva has operated on the site largely unaffected by security forces, although in recent years, additional checkpoints were placed in the area and buildings used by the yeshiva were demolished. .
In 2019, the owners of the land filed a lawsuit in the High Court, demanding that the yeshiva be removed and that they be allowed access to the land. In January 2023, the High Court gave the state 90 days to explain why it was not evicting the yeshiva. The High Court also questioned how it would be possible for the state to approve the agreement on the land as the land is privately owned by Palestinians and not state land.
After the High Court hearing, Defense Minister Yoav Galant and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced that the government was “changing direction” in the Homesh case and would promote legislation. Legalizing the Continuity of the Homesh YeshivaOperations on privately owned Palestinian land.
The declaration did not address the possibility of resettlement of the entire settlement and did not explain how they could legalize the yeshiva’s use of land that has been shown as private Palestinian property, the expropriation of which is currently illegal under Israeli law. Is.
Left NGO warns of risks presented by repealing disengagement
After Tuesday’s vote, the left-wing NGO Yash Deen NGO, which is representing Palestinians who own the land on which Homesh sat, insisted that they would continue with that lawsuit, despite the law being repealed. Will keep, whose purpose is to remove Homesh Yeshiva. ,
Yash Din said, “Repeal of the secession law cannot legalize dacoity and theft.” “It is not possible to legislate that theft is permitted. The land on which Homesh was settled is still privately owned Palestinian land by residents of the village of Burka. The petition to vacate the illegal yeshiva in Homesh is still pending.” and it is hoped that the Judges of the High Court will put an end to Homesh’s farce and order the State to evict the encroachers.”
Israel’s security movement commanders warned on Wednesday that the repeal of disengagement is “catastrophic for the state’s security”.
The movement said, “This is another in a series of confusing decisions by the Israeli government that will harm the personal and national security of each of us, and provoke Israel’s political and security backer – our valued friend, the USA.” “The decision will break the Abraham Accords and incite violence at the cost of the blood of IDF soldiers and civilians.”
“The future of the country depends on the separation between the two peoples, and as senior officials in the former security regime, we warn that a return to the northern West Bank would be a security burden and have disastrous security and economic policy consequences.”
The Peace Now NGO warned that the repeal of the law would have “harsh effects”, pointing to the possibility that settlers now allowed to enter the territory would set up illegal outposts and recognized settlements in the region. to establish and the fact that freedom of entry for Israelis would increase friction between Palestinians and Israelis.
“The proposed law is thus the first major step towards turning the northern part of the West Bank into a space with settlements, with the aim of preventing the possibility of establishing a viable Palestinian state, and thus future political and peaceful settlement between Israel and Reaching and the Palestinians.”
especially with respect to Homesh, Peace Now warned that the repeal of the disengagement law sends the message that “settler violence and the theft of Palestinian land is effective and justified.”