The Mitzpei Avichai outpost is slated for destruction by the government. It is adjacent to Kiryat Arba and home to seven families. Mr. Amichai and Mrs. Rina Ariel, parents of terror victim Hallel Yaffa Ariel HY”D, are fighting to keep the outpost where it is. They exclaim that if the outpost was in place when the lone terrorist headed to their home in the Givat Charsina neighborhood of Kiryat Arba, he would have been detected and he would not have succeeded in entering the home and murdering their daughter in her bedroom while she slept.

The Ariels sent a letter to the government asking not to remove the outpost, describing the strategic importance of its presence. Attempts to persuade the residents of the outpost to leave on their own have failed as they remain determined to remain in place. According to the Ariels, the outpost is slated for removal shortly after the shloshim for their daughter.

It is pointed out that due to the location of the outpost, one must enter Arab land to reach it, adding to the volatile situation in the eyes of government officials.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)