The slogans that were heard from members of the dati leumi party have been replaced by a harsh reality check, and it now appears despite Bayit Yehudi leader Naftali Bennett’s efforts and promises, the community of Amona will be expelled once again as per the order handed down by the High Court of Justice.
It is clear to all that the Regulation Bill which was the great hope of the right-wing will pass in Knesset but it will not be applicable to Amona, for the 8 homes in Ofra and 17 homes in the Netiv HaAvot neighborhood of Elazar for that matter and all of these homes R”L will be destroyed by the Government of Israel as per the High Court. It is also likely that immediately after the bill is passed into law, the matter will be brought before the High Court again and the court will overturn the Knesset law as it has done in the past in the ongoing power struggle between the legislative and judiciary branches of Israel’s governmental system.
At the crux of the matter is paragraph 7, which states the law applies retroactively, which was the last hope to save Amona, the Ofra homes and those in Elazar. The legal experts including Attorney General Dr. Avichai Mandelblit explain the bill including paragraph 7 will not stand the challenge of a High Court challenge. Others feel that even if the court overturns it, the bill must be passed with paragraph 7 to permit the Knesset to do its utmost to save the communities.
The bill will be in Knesset for its final votes on Wednesday, 7 Kislev, and at present, it appears that Bennett is willing to have the vote on the bill without the inclusion of paragraph 7.
Opponents of the plan point to Migron, one of the cases in which residents were promised a new yishuv nearby. They too agreed to leave on their own in 2012 aware of the High Court of Justice destruction order against them, once again with the court accepting the position of Arabs, who claimed land ownership. They are now aware the area which is now their home is not suited for a permanent community as it should and the community if breaking apart. Another example is the Ulpana neighborhood of Beit El. Wanting to avoid bloodshed and confrontations between civilians and security personnel, the mora d’asra of the community Rabbi Zalman Melamed Shlita agreed to ask the families to leave on their own to be located to a larger community. Here to the expulsion was ordered by the High Court of Justice after Arabs claimed the homes were built on their land. This occurred in 2012 and this too has yet to occur and life for the ulpana families has been difficult.
The residents of Amona feel the government cannot be trusted and despite the bleak picture, they refuse to leave voluntarily and are calling on the masses to come and assist them, vowing they will passively resist efforts to oust them from their homes. There are also calls, albeit not from Amona residents, to use violence and any means possible to prevent yet another Israeli of eviction from their homes. Amona residents have refused any and every deal proposed, including as recently as this week when Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu offered NIS 50 million to relocate the approximately forty families.
At present, the coalition lacks a majority for the bill as Likud MK Dr. Benny Begin insists he will vote against it as promised, insisting the law with or without the inclusion of paragraph 7 is a “bad law” and he cannot back it. Considerable pressure was applied on Begin to get him to agree to abstain, but he would not, refusing to permit the bill to pass into law.
Speaking to Kol Berama Radio on Monday morning 5 Kislev, Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked signaled she too realizes the Regulation Bill is not likely to save Amona and the tzibur must prepare for this eventuality.
