Jewish Settlers Agree to Leave Amona Outpost in West Bank The deal comes a week before a Dec. 25 deadline set by Israel’s high court to evacuate the land By Rory Jones see note please
http://www.wsj.com/articles/jewish-settlers-agree-to-leave-amona-outpost-in-west-bank-1482088443
This is an appalling concession. The people in Amona came to build in and live in peace . ……rsk
TEL AVIV—Israel’s government on Sunday forged a last-ditch deal to relocate Jewish settlers from homes built on Palestinian land to another part of the West Bank, avoiding a potentially violent confrontation but underscoring state support for controversial settlements.
After weeks of talks with 40 families of Jewish settlers that had constructed an outpost of trailer homes in the Palestinian territories north of Ramallah, Israel’s conservative government agreed to move most of the settlers to nearby plots, a spokesman for the families said.
Israel’s Supreme Court in 2014 ruled that the outpost, called Amona, was built illegally after claims were lodged by Palestinians over the land. The court ordered the site be evacuated by Dec. 25.
The ruling pitted the judiciary and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against members of his conservative ruling government coalition who supported Amona and have since put forward new legislation to legalize other outposts in the West Bank.
In recent days, hundreds of supporters of the settlers had camped out at Amona ahead of plans by the police and military to forcibly remove the families. Earlier Sunday, Mr. Netanyahu urged the settlers to take the deal offered by the government and evacuate peacefully. CONTINUE AT SITE
“There has not been a government that showed more concern for settlement in the land of Israel and no government will show more concern,” he said, according to a statement issued by his office.
Israel recognizes 130 settlements in the West Bank on land that Palestinians claim for a future state, but considers some 100 so-called outposts in the territory illegal. Much of the international community considers any Israeli settlement in the West Bank a violation of international law barring the transfer of citizens to territory acquired by force.
Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and roughly 430,000 settlers now live in the territory. Amona was established in the 1990s on the edge of a settlement called Ofra and deemed legal by Israel.
In response to Amona talks, lawmakers from the conservative Jewish Home party last month put forward a bill to legalize some of the outposts. A vote on the bill passed through the Israeli parliament, known as the Knesset, earlier this month, but still faces some legislative hurdles before becoming law.
A spokesman for Mr. Netanyahu declined to comment on the details of the deal agreed with settlers.
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