Speaking at an assembly hosted on Monday 4 Menachem Av in the community of Nitzan, Minister of Agriculture (Bayit Yehudi) Uri Ariel stated “It is a national responsibility not to expel the residents of Amona again. We lived this horror film during the expulsion of Gush Katif. The behavior of the expellees was exemplary and 100% behaved responsibly. They did not raise their hands to soldiers who tried to allegations to the contrary”.

He added that national responsibility does not end there but continues after the expulsion – to continue settling the length and breadth of the country – it is a national responsibility”.

He feels the people who failed to act responsibly are those who tried to blemish the residents of Gush Katif when the contrary was true.

He calls for learning from the expellees of Gush Katif regarding Amona, and to realize the national responsibility involved in reaching a solution to prevent their expulsion rather than continuing to look for a solution every time.

The original Amona was destroyed after violent confrontations between residents and supporters and police, in 2006. It was a bloody confrontation with police, as mounted units literally ran people over without mercy.

As per a High Court of Justice ruling, the current Amona must be removed by December 25, 2016. The government has offered residents to agree to locate to the same general area, where new homes will be built and the community significantly enlarged. Residents have refused to date, insisting they will not be removed from their homes again.

Amona is currently home to about forty families.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)