July 7 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Israeli Government has recognized this Friday for the first time before the High Court of Israel, the equivalent of the Supreme Court, which allowed the illegal construction in the Homesh settlement, the epicenter of a crisis between the settlers, the Israeli Government and activists who oppose precisely to this construction.
Homesh was built on private Palestinian land and initially evacuated along with three other settlements after Israel’s withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and after a law was passed preventing Israelis from entering the site without special permission, which was not has prevented settlers from settling in the area.
In an effort to “legalize” the settlement in the eyes of Israeli Justice — not International Law, which declares all Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal — the settlers decided to move the yeshiva (a religious study center) that until then it was on private Palestinian territory, on land legalized by Israel.
Now, the Israeli government has explained that it accepted this maneuver on the understanding that the Palestinians now had free access to the land previously occupied by the study center. However, activists have specified that, although this land is now free, the road that leads to the hill where the yeshiva was located continues through private Palestinian territory occupied by settlers.
The Israeli authorities have recognized this decision at the request of the Israeli Supreme Court and thanks to an initiative of the NGO Yesh Din. In its response, the Israeli government also acknowledges that Defense Minister Yoav Gallant ordered the Army not to try to prevent prohibited construction in the area.
It should be remembered that the US State Department criticized the Israeli government last Monday for allowing settlers to establish a “permanent” presence in the Homesh settlement after the transfer of the yeshiva the previous morning.
