A petition was submitted Sunday night to the High Court of Justice where the state asked for an extension for the Homesh Yeshiva until May 10. This is in light of the Knesset’s vote last month to repeal the section of the 2005 Disengagement Law as it applies to the sites of four former “settlements” that were evacuated just after the Gaza pullout.
For over 17 years, the Homesh Yeshiva has defied the ban that had existed on the entry of Israelis to these evacuated sites. It has continued to conduct classes on the Homesh hilltop in small modular buildings and or tents. It has survived multiple evacuations despite an HCJ ruling in 2013 which upheld the contention that the land belongs to Palestinians and allowed the Palestinian landowners to farm there.
While right-wing politicians and activists believe Knesset’s repeal of the Disengagement law is a first step in rebuilding the four “settlements,” including the Homesh Yeshiva, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that he has no intention of allowing them to be rebuilt. But the Homesh Yeshiva still stands and continues to defy all odds.