Are Arab Communities Illegal?

As per the BBC

Israel has decided to make legal under Israeli law three settlement outposts in the West Bank, the prime minister's office has said in a statement.  It said that a ministerial committee had decided to "formalise the status" of Bruchin and Rechelim, in the north, and Sansana, near Hebron in the south.

I wouldn't term those communities "outposts" and I think Rechalim was made legal; already years ago. And as for Rechalim, I was there at its founding about a month after the terror incident (from which my wife was saved, being in another bus) on the eve of the Madrid Conference at the end of October 1991 when our neighbor here at Shiloh was murdered, Rachela Druck.
In any case, we have a response:

The Palestinian Authority strongly condemned the decision. "Every single settlement built on Palestinian land is illegal", Chief Negotiator, Saeb Erekat, told the BBC..."I don't want to get into a discussion about what the Israelis use as an excuse for what is legal and what is not," says Mr Erekat, who handed the letter to the Israeli Prime Minister. "The Israeli government must choose between peace and settlements. It cannot have both."

I wonder, according to his thinking, is every single Arab community built in Israel...illegal?  Are they "settlements"?

Where's the logic, if not?

__________

UPDATE

Foreign Secretary condemns Israel’s legalisation of illegal outposts
24 April 2012

Foreign Secretary William Hague comments on the news that the Israeli government has legalised three outposts in the West Bank.

Foreign Secretary William Hague said:

“I strongly condemn the Israeli government’s decision yesterday to turn three illegal outposts in the West Bank into settlements. I urged the Israeli government in my statement on 5 April to remove - not legalise - outposts across the West Bank. I fully appreciate the difficult political discussion within Israel such action would require. However, the official sanction being given by Israel, designating outposts as settlements for the first time in over 20 years, sets a dangerous precedent for other outposts, which are illegal under both international and Israeli law.

“By seeking to entrench illegal settlements in the West Bank, as this decision does, the Israeli government risks sending the message that it is not serious about its stated commitment to the goal of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The United Kingdom, in common with all our European Union partners, urges the Israeli government to listen to Israel's international friends. The UK calls on the Israeli government to focus their efforts on a lasting resolution of the Arab-Israeli conflict, to which this further shift in settlement policy presents one more obstacle. I call on the Israeli government to rescind this decision."

^

An Outpost Strike

General Strike.

In the light of the campaign of destruction these past few weeks,

In the light of the government's plans to destroy Migron, Givat Assaf, Givat HaUlpana in Bet-El and other places,

Considering the government's policy to establish an Arab state in the heart of the Land of Israel,

And facing the persecution of the lovers of the Land of Israel and branding them as spies,

We will not remain silent anymore.

Particulars to follow.

No More Thieves in the Night

This quote from Jeremiah 49:9 came to me

if thieves by night, would they not destroy till they had enough?

after alerted to Lahav's story:

West Bank outposts (in Judea and Samaria) will no longer be dismantled at night, if a bill by MK Ya’acov Katz (National Union) passes.

The Ministerial Committee on Legislation plans to discuss the initiative on Sunday. Should it be approved, it will then have to pass a preliminary vote and three plenum readings to become law. The bill states that no populated home may be demolished between 6 p.m. and 8 a.m.

Co-sponsoring the legislation are MKs Tzipi Hotovely (Likud), Yariv Levin (Likud) and Dov Henin (Hadash=Communist), and the Association for Civil Rights in Israel has expressed support for the initiative.

Katz explained that the bill’s purpose was to protect human dignity. “Even if the courts decide someone’s home must be demolished, the rest of his human rights must be protected,” he said. “It cannot be that people are forced out of their homes, even if it is justified, and are left without a reasonable chance to find shelter.”

Wow. Don't you just love the Bible?

^

On Conflict of Interests

Haaretz is trumpeting:

Lawyer who worked for outposts to sit on Israeli government panel to legalize them

A lawyer appointed to serve on a government committee seeking ways to legalize illegal settlement outposts was on the payroll of a settlers' organization advocating such legalization until nine days ago.

And the government-employed lawyer who screwed the issue up, making claims that were incorrect and unfactual and provided a highly subjective viewpoint on the matter of outposts, Talia Sasson, had joined the extreme radical-progressive Meretz Party and ran for Knesset at slot number 7.

Conflict?

^

Outpost Campaign Targets Minister Hershkowitz

A new poster has been spotted on the issue of the dismantlement expected of Givat Assaf and other communities built on land the late King Hussein distributed to certain local residents to curry their favor and upon which nothing had been built nor had any agriculutral use been made of that land:

It asks that Minister Hershkowitz be pressured to inform PM Netanyahu that his party will leave the government before any dismantlement occurs, not after.

He seems to be getting the message. So does his party comrade, Uri Ohrbach. And their faction member Michael ben-Ari tore into Benny Begin today.

Netanyahu, however, seems determined to have his coalition break up:

After announcing his intention to set up a team that would examine the possibility of retroactively legalizing construction in some West Bank outposts, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday, "The effort should focus on bolstering the communities, not clashing with the law. It is forbidden to build on anyone's private land."

..."We must build in accordance with the law, thus strengthening the Land of Israel. There is no contradiction between the (settlement enterprise) and upholding the law," Netanyahu added.

Education Minister Gideon Sa'ar said he objects to the destruction of outposts in the West Bank because, according to him, there is "no proof of ownership and because the structures were erected by the state in good faith.  The homes were built by the government, and destroying them would be the wrong solution," he added.

Knesset members Miri Regev and Yariv Levin also criticized Netanyahu's remarks, with Levin claiming that "judicial elements are dictating a political viewpoint that is preventing the government from governing. There is a simple solution to the problem, and the government must not destroy (outposts)."

Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz said during the meeting, "(The State) builds homes, a Palestinian casts doubt (over their legality) and someone petitions the High Court of Justice. It is enough that someone casts the slightest doubt for the State to become defensive and seal the communities' fate."

Netanyahu responded by saying: "Why must I destroy these homes? Is it required (from a legal standpoint)? I can offer compensation."

Steinitz continued to say that "we are making families miserable – not for a peace agreement and not for justice. It is morally and legally wrong. As someone who has researched the events at Amona – we will be subjecting ourselves to unnecessary tension and division."

We wait.

^

Pictures from Yesterday At Alei-Ayin & Gaon HaYarden

Continuing from yesterday's post:

a)  the rebuilding commences:

b)  the tractors destroying a structure at Gaon HaYarden:



c)  the destruction at Alei-Ayin:



d) more destruction at Alei-Ayin:



^

Demolitioners

The small outpost of Nof HaYarden was dismantled this morning. Located near Adei-Ad.

Some pictures:















Photo credits: Yonah Tzoref


UPDATE

And if you'll ask me about this item:

Firefighters were struggling on Monday afternoon to extinguish a blaze in an olive grove in the Palestinian village of Kafr Burin, near the settlement of Yitzhar in the West Bank. Security forces suspect extreme right-wing activists set fire to the trees in retaliation for the evacuation of illegal structures in several West Bank outposts earlier Monday.

a) I oppose and condemn such acts.
b) I think them illegal and criminal.
c) I think those who do such acts, Jewish or otherwise, idiots and stupid and dumb.
d) I think them morally reprehensible and counter-productive and unhelpful and scandalous.

Rabbi Dov Lior's Opinion

In light of the threat of destruction of outposts, the public is asked to stay alert and report any suspicious movement of troops.

About Shabbat:

Rabbi Dov Lior, Chief Rabbi of Kiryat Arba Hevron, told the members of the Efrat-Gush etzion-Kiryat Arba action committees that if one sees a movement of troops on Shabbat and there is a possibility that those troops are on their way to destroy outposts, one can use the phone, on Shabbat, to report about it to the known activists of the area and they will check what is going on and give instructions to the public accordingly.

May we never need to come to that point.

May our security forces always be used against the Arab enemy and in defense of the People of Israel and the land of Israel.

The Raising...and Lowering of Outpost "Pnei Shiloh"

A few people decided to "establish" an outpost community next to Shiloh, on the other side of Highway 60, on an abandoned army base.

I didn't take part but Yonah Tzoref provdied me with a few pictures from which I have selected these:


It's up:

It's being reviewed:

It's being filmed and recorded:

It's down:

The Border Police woman making sure it becomes history:

Oh Boy, Obama

...there was a desire for Barack Obama to be a super-president. There was a hope - because the entire world would benefit - that he would deal with some of the world's major dangers with determination and wisdom...

...But what happened? Darfur can wait. Our outposts interest him more, as does removing the roadblocks. They are not pleasant, but what are they compared to the atrocities in vast parts of Africa and Asia? But they are more important than his other humanitarian concerns.

It's not merely a humanitarian problem. The outposts, according to the Americans' political beliefs, are obstacles to peace. Not the North Koreans' insult to America with its nuclear and missile experiments, or even Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's disdain for Obama's words of rapprochment. And also not the falling apart of nuclear Pakistan, with all that implies for Asia and the Middle East. Only the outposts.

It seems we are dealing with a president who makes fateful decisions without studying the material as he should, especially that of international relations. Obama started off on an ambitious ideological path, full of goodwill, but also had plenty of preconceived views. An idealistic president who tries to change the laws of nature in a situation soaked in evil plots, like those of Iran, North Korea and the Taliban, can have his head handed to him. And when it is an American president we are referring to, that head could be the head of the entire world.

This disproportionate American insistence on an utterly insignificant issue should worry peace-loving people throughout the world. In return for dismantling outposts - National Security Adviser James Jones reveals his knowledge and worldview - they will take care of Iran. After all, not more than 300 people live in all the outposts combined, some of them not even permanently. Anyone who equates them with Iran's nuclearization betrays an extreme lack of sense of proportion. How can one rely on him for matters that are a thousand times more serious?

Israel Harel

Life Goes On

BBC's Tim Franks, back from a vacation, has a report on my neighboring community to the north, a mile away, Eli.



In New support for West Bank outpost, he claims "an unauthorised settlement in the West Bank, illegal even under Israeli law, appears to be benefiting from state funding".

The crime?

A road is being built from the established settlement of Eli, near [near? not really] the Palestinian city of Nablus, leading east to the illegal outpost at Hayovel...under Israeli law, those newer, smaller settlements - known as outposts - which have not received authorisation from the government are deemed, by the Israeli government, to be illegal.

The details:

Drive up the twisting, landscaped roads of Eli, a mid-sized settlement in the heart of the West Bank, and you come across a scene of intense construction activity...outside observers are not welcome. The BBC was asked, twice, to leave the settlement, when we drew too close to the site of the road.

...Abdel Nasser...shows on a map, the new road to the outpost carves straight through land which he says is owned by his village, Qaryut...an official from Israel's Civil Administration said that the matter was now in the hands of "inspectors".

...All this has been happening under a government which is publically committed to the eventual establishment of a Palestinian state, in the West Bank.

The future Israeli government, which is likely to come into office next week, will be led by a man, Binyamin Netanyahu, who sees no such need...the momentum on the ground appears to be swinging the other way.

Well, maybe authorisation is just around the corner, maybe Abdel Nasser doesn't own the land and maybe the courts will agree.

Now, "Collective Punishment"

In response to Ehud Olmert, the departing prime minister of Israel, announcing a series of measures directed against Jewish residency in Judea and Samaria (see bleow full details), my colleague, Dani Dayan, was quoted in the New York Times

Dani Dayan, the chairman of the Yesha Council, an umbrella organization that represents the settlers, attacked Mr. Olmert’s announcement about financing as “collective punishment” and said that politicians were mounting a campaign of incitement and demonization against the settlers before the national elections set for Feb. 10.

Mr. Dayan said that the only government investment in the outposts today was indirect, in the form of the regional council funds, which go to services like garbage collection and school buses. “Does this mean that they won’t clear the garbage?” Mr. Dayan asked, adding that he hoped “this bad government will be replaced with a better one in four months.”

(I may be on Al-Jazeera later. Check back for update)



Full details:

Prime Minister Olmert said: “Of late, we have witnessed several very serious phenomena. I would like to say at the outset that the overwhelming majority of residents in Judea and Samaria live there legally. They are law-abiding citizens. They love both the people and the land. We have only high regard for them. But there is also a not small group of wild people who behave in a way that threatens proper law and governance, not only in the areas in which they live but also in the overall atmosphere of the State of Israel. This is unacceptable and we cannot countenance it. These violations of the law have been accompanied, more than once, by violent behavior toward security and law-enforcement personnel. Attacking soldiers and their commanders, attacking policemen and other security personnel, and injuring them are unacceptable. We are not prepared to countenance it and we will not.”

Prime Minister Olmert emphasized that measures would be taken so that the West Bank would not be Israel’s ‘wild west’.

Defense Minister Ehud Barak, Israel Security Agency Director Yuval Diskin, Justice Minister Prof. Daniel Friedmann, Attorney-General Meni Mazuz, Public Security Minister Avi Dicter, Israel Police Deputy Inspector-General Shahar Ayalon and other senior officials briefed ministers on the issue of law enforcement in the territories including relations between extremist settler groups and the security establishment, the prevailing violence, and the responses of the law enforcement system against the surging violence that threatens the rule of law in Judea and Samaria, and in Israel.

Following the subsequent discussion, Prime Minister Olmert concluded as follows:

A. The recent disturbances constitute a threat to the rule of law in the entire State of Israel.

B. Dealing with the issues requires special preparations and cooperation between the IDF and the judicial and enforcement authorities operating in Judea and Samaria.

C. Measures necessary today will be increased as much as possible, including increasing enforcement personnel, documenting disturbances, arresting those who break the law and bringing them quickly to trial, the use of administrative detention and distance orders, and such additional measures as may be necessary.

D. All possible measures will continue to be used in dealing with illegal construction. Residents of Judea and Samaria will receive appropriate and effective responses vis-à-vis legal construction permits in accordance with the Government’s international commitments.

E. The judicial will formulate legal measures so as to increase punishment of those who break the law along the lines that have been witnessed in recent weeks.

F. Justice Minister Friedmann, in cooperation with the legal establishment, will continue to initiate legislative amendments wherever existing measures are found to be ineffective, and will act to complete legislative processes already underway.

G. Defense minister Barak will be responsible for coordinating efforts on the issue, in cooperation with the ministries of Justice and Public Security, Vice Premier Haim Ramon (as Prime Minister Olmert’s representative), the IDF, the Israel Police, the ISA and Attorney-General Mazuz.

H. Defense Minister Barak will brief the Government on the issue and submit general recommendations for dealing with it, within two weeks.

I(ii). The involvement of public employees in incitement will be examined and appropriate measures will be taken against them.

(ii). All direct or indirect financial support of illegal outposts, and their infrastructures, will be halted.

And this update:

The Committee of Samaria Settlers is set to file a complaint against Vice Premier Haim Ramon and National Infrastructures Minister Binymain Ben-Eliezer, claiming that remarks made by the two made during a cabinet meeting Sunday constituted libel and incitement against the settler community.

While Ramon had expressed displeasure over "discrimination and apartheid in dealing with Palestinians and Jews involved in disturbances in Judea and Samaria," Ben-Eliezer warned of political violence and said of the settlers: "They don't think like us; their thought is messianic, mystical, satanic, and irrational."

..."Leading the libelers and defamers is convicted criminal Haim Ramon," the complaint read. "He initiated the meeting and called for the arrest of hundreds of civilians on the basis of 'intelligence.' Following in Ramon's wake was Minister Fuad [Binyamin] Ben-Eliezer, who called the excellent settler community people with 'satanic thought,' no less, and went so far as to recommend that a 'blitz' be opened against them, (a word which in German means a swift murderous battle)."

In his letter to Mazuz, the representative of the settlers, lawyer Doron Ben-Zvi went on to assert that "failure to initiate an investigation of the ministers will constitute clear favoritism… Regrettably, you not only participated in the cabinet meeting but stood aloof while several of the senior ministers (as well as the prime minister himself) made horrible incitive remarks

My Interview on VOA

Yisrael Medad, a spokesman for the West Bank settlers, says the Amona settlers should be allowed to stay, as should all Jews who decide they want to live in the West Bank.



"There is an argument about a dozen [outposts] and that is for the courts to decide,” he said. “But the principle is that there should not be any limit to having Jews live anywhere in the land of Israel, just as Arabs can live throughout the state of Israel anywhere they want to. The impediment to the peace process is the Arab intransigence to see Jews living anywhere in the state of Israel."

The entire broadcast text (the video should be here):-

During his recent visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories in January, President Bush called on Israel to honor its commitment to remove unauthorized settlements and outposts from the West Bank. But with more than 120 settlements and illegal outposts in the West Bank, dismantling any of them will not be easy. VOA's Jim Teeple traveled to the West Bank and has this report.

This is what happened the last time Israeli forces tried to evacuate an outpost in the West Bank.

This is Amona, outpost Israeli forces tried to dismantle two years ago. This footage shows the kind of resistance Israeli security forces might face if they return, or try and dismantle other outposts.

This is all that is left of the nine houses destroyed that day.

Ydit Levenger lost her house in the confrontation. Levenger called Amona home for nearly a decade. Now she lives in this nearby trailer, as do the other settlers who live in Amona. If they are forced to leave, they will probably move down to Ofra - a major West Bank settlement. She says, "For me it is not 10 years old, it is 4,000 years old. Abraham was here and Jacob dreamed his dream here. The prophets lived nearby here and I tell my children their stories."

Under a court order, no new settlers can move to Amona. But the court has yet to decide if Israeli troops will return to dismantle these trailers and force the settlers to leave.

Yisrael Medad, a spokesman for the West Bank settlers, says the Amona settlers should be allowed to stay, as should all Jews who decide they want to live in the West Bank.

"There is an argument about a dozen [outposts] and that is for the courts to decide,” he said. “But the principle is that there should not be any limit to having Jews live anywhere in the land of Israel, just as Arabs can live throughout the state of Israel anywhere they want to. The impediment to the peace process is the Arab intransigence to see Jews living anywhere in the state of Israel."

Back on the West Bank here in Silwad, people feel differently. Silwad is the Palestinian town closest to Amona and Ofra.

Palestinians used to walk down this road to their fields in what is now Ofra and Amona. Now the road is blocked and the only traffic are Israeli troops who Silwad residents say stage nightly raids in their town looking for militants and their supporters.

Mohammed Issa lives in Silwad but he says much of his family land now lies beyond the Israeli roadblock in Ofra.

Issa and his mother say they have not been able to visit their land since the 1970s when it was seized by Israel. He says these documents from the 1930s prove his ownership but Israeli authorities reject their validity because they are in his father's name, "We have taken them to court and we have the documents to prove this. They do not recognize my ownership of the land and tell me to bring my father who is dead."

Issam Aruru, who directs a Jerusalem legal aid and human rights center, tries to help people like Mohammed Issa fight their cases with the Israeli authorities. He says a Palestinian state will not be possible until settlements and outposts like Ofra and Amona are dismantled.


Issam Aruru
"When we talk about a viable Palestinian state these outposts affect movement in the West Bank,” Aruru said. “They affect the economic living of Palestinians. Many of them were established on agricultural land taken from Palestinians, so if we want a viable prosperous state we need to keep these resources."

These bleak hills are now the frontline in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Whether or not Israel's government can honor its pledge to dismantle outposts like Amona could determine whether or not Israelis and Palestinians can reach a peace agreement by the end of this year as their leaders

Another Truth

Following Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's declaration on Sunday that illegal outposts in the West Bank were "a disgrace," senior defense officials close to Defense Minister Ehud Barak accused the prime minister of holding up a detailed plan to remove them.

The plan has been presented to Olmert at least three times and could be ready for implementation within weeks if he approved it, the officials said.

According to the proposal, a majority of the outposts would be evacuated while some - built on entirely Jewish-owned land - would be incorporated into existing settlements.

"The plan is in its final stages and is almost finished," a senior defense official said. "The person who has been holding up the evacuations has been Olmert, who has yet to approve the plan."

Talia Sasson

The author of a highly influential government report on illegal outposts in the West Bank has recently warned the government against approving a new justice ministry proposal that would allow state funding for outposts, Haaretz has learned.

In her letter to the Ministerial Committee on Unauthorized Outposts - a panel which was formed to implement her report on the subject - Tali [oh, she's cute little 'Tali' now and not Talia?] Sasson says the proposal would constitute "a clear and immediate violation of the prime minister's prior commitments to the president of the United States."

More below but to the point or, rather, her point.

Talia lies.

Olmert's comittment to Annapolis and President Bush concerned "unauthorized outposts" Authorized outposts are fine.

I mentioned that matter in a previous post of mine - she should really read my blog.

Here is Bush's summation of the understandings he reached with Olmert:-

Israel must demonstrate its support for the creation of a prosperous and successful Palestinian state by removing unauthorized outposts

Talia's a lawyer. She doesn't understand? What part of that sentence above doesn't she understand?

-----------------------
More:-

The ministry's proposal, which will come up for discussion in 10 days, advocates cementing Jewish ownership of land that is owned by Palestinians, Sasson said. She also criticized what she called "allowing state funding for illegal outposts." The proposal was drafted in consultation with various parties, including settler and political leaders. One of these leaders was Avigdor Lieberman, who is a member of the committee on outposts and leader of Yisrael Beiteinu.

Political analysts anticipate the committee to vote in favor of the proposal. Kadima's members of the committee - Vice Premier Haim Ramon, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, Justice Minister Daniel Friedmann, Public Security Minister Avi Dichter and Minister for the Development of the Negev and the Galilee Jacob Edery - are expected to vote in favor.

"The proposal clearly conflicts with the report's findings and recommendations, and does not agree with the government's decision to form the ministerial committee in March 2005," Sasson wrote in her letter - a copy of which was sent to Attorney General Menachem Mazuz's office.

"The proposal only appears to keep with the spirit of the document. But by stating exceptions to the rules put forth in the report, the proposal suggests turning the exception into the rule and vice versa," Sasson recently told the committee.

A major contention for Sasson is a clause stating that settlements would be allowed to realize old building plans that have been approved by former governments. "This allows expanding settlements by a letting them form a new 'neighborhood' several kilometers away from the main settlement," Sasson says. "These so-called neighborhoods will in fact become new settlements."

P.S. No, they won't. They are part of the existing communities.

And Zionism Continues

The committee's meeting - the first after a year's hiatus - comes amid new data, gathered by Peace Now's settlement monitoring team. According to the data, numerous West Bank outposts have expanded in recent months.

Aerial photographs obtained by Peace Now show that 18 trailers have been added since May to several outposts, mainly in the Shiloh region. For example, there are four more trailers at the outposts Ahia and Esh Kodesh; two more trailers at Adei Ad and Amona.

Found at.

Will the Left Protest This Illegal Outpost?

Palestinians set up outpost on expropriated land

Dozens of Palestinians established an outpost Wednesday night on the expropriated lands of Bil'in village, close to the separation fence. The Palestinians said that they have established a children's education center at the place.

Representatives of the Civil Administration and police arrived there Thursday morning but so far, the building is still intact.

And Who Else Could Be Evacuated?

The headline reads:

Peres: Israel could evacuate dozens of West Bank settlements

And Reuters reports:

Israel could remove dozens of Jewish settlements from the West Bank, Vice Premier Shimon Peres told Channel Two television on Saturday, but warned that "not all the settlements, and I'm not even sure most of the settlements," would be evacuated.

The number of settlements evacuated could be in the dozens, he said. "I think that a serious effort will be made to do that which we undertook to do, which is removing settlements."

And since this is Medad's MyRightWord blog, who just know what the answer is to my question of who else could be evacuated.

Right?