In his final hours in office as he retired on Tuesday, outgoing attorney general Avichai Mandelblit gave a green light to a deal between the government and Judea/Samaria community. This would retroactively authorize Evyatar without the need for a legal reason. The next step toward the establishment of a permanent yeshiva in Evyatar is the declaration of its land as state land.

A reminder: Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, in the early days after his government’s formation, had reached an agreement with Evyatar residents by which they would evacuate their homes in exchange for his promise to authorize a yeshiva and a “settlement” there.

The move pushes forward the plan, which still needs a final green light from Defense Minister Benny Gantz. Yair Lapid warned Bennett that going forward with this could damage Israeli relations with the Biden administration and provoke a harsh response from the international community.

Israel should exercise its Sovereignty and never bow to political pressure. The Land of Israel is the Nation State of the Jewish people. Evyatar was settled on legally owned land and Israel has every right to build it up. We are cautiously waiting to see Bennett not bowing to any foreign or internal pressure and fulfilling his promise.

Sources:
Coalition Crisis Brewing as Lapid Warns Bennett Against Keeping Promise to Evyatar Jews, by David Israel/Jewish Press, February 3, 2022

Mandelblit said to have okayed illegal West Bank outpost just before retiring as AG, by AP and TOI Staff, February 2, 2022

On Sunday morning, Religious Zionism party Knesset members toured western Samaria, focusing on areas in Area C that are de facto being taken over by Palestinian Arabs. Accompanying them was Samaria Regional Council Head Yossi Dagan, who told the MKs about the efforts being made to counter Arab encroachments.

At the start of the tour, Dagan noted that Arab encroachment includes the paving of new roads, erection of buildings – illegally constructed – and other actions. Also visited were State-owned lands near the industrial zone in Alei Zahav which Arabs have infiltrated. The group was also told about infiltration into the area around Bruchin.

Dagan added, “We will never give up on this land. This is our land – we are responsible for it on behalf of the Jewish People. If the government and other authorities are not fulfilling their obligations then we will be the ones to preserve this area. We will prevent this encroachment and put an end to this shameful situation.”

Local residents remain strong as they continue to wage a fierce campaign against these illegal takeover attempts. Now it’s time for Israel’s government to do the right thing and step in to protect its residents, its legally owned land – and SOVEREIGNTY. Prime Minister Bennett, what are you waiting for??

Source:
‘Area C falling into Palestinian hands while govt does nothing’, by Hezki Baruch/Israel National News, January 30, 2022

This morning there was rioting in the Negev and an attack by Bedouin on police forces and inspectors at the IDF’s Tze’elim Base. As these attacks continue, Regavim warns that the new five-year plan for the Negev, which the government is expected to approve, contains no budgeting for law enforcement and will cause long-term damage to the already dire state of governance in the Negev.

In the Knesset ministers are embroiled in a tug-of-war over the government’s new five-year plan for the Negev. Meir Deutsch, Director General of Regavim, notes that “increased enforcement activity in the Negev over the past year is the result of government decisions and budgetary allocations legislated in 2017. As it now reads, the new Negev Five-Year Plan will cut the oxygen supply for enforcement, and the results will be felt over the coming years. Under no condition should this plan be approved; all ‘carrots’ and no ‘sticks’ is not a plan, it’s a recipe for disaster.”

Source:
Regavim: Government’s plan shuts down governance in the Negev, by Israel National News, January 31, 2022

A report on Tuesday that Israel’s government decided to move the illegal Bedouin outpost of Khan al-Ahmar to a new location nearby has come as a surprise to the people who live there. Locals there told Tazpit Press Service exclusively that residents had yet to be informed.

Regavim CEO Meir Deutsch stated that he reiterates that he considers this another surrender by the Israeli government. “The area in question, the Mishor Adumim area, is the most strategic, lying between Jerusalem and the Jordan Valley Jericho and Ramallah. That’s why the place gets so much attention from the PA and the EU.”

At this point all we can say is what a failure Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is. He must assert Israel’s legal ownership over the land. To know that he would even consider potentially surrendering a piece of Israel that is strategic to its defense and existence as a whole country (Yisrael Shlayma) is unthinkable.

Photo courtesy of Regavim

Sources:
Exclusive: Khan al-Ahmar Residents Say They’re Unaware of Government’s Evacuation Decision, by Hana Levi Julian/Jewish Press, January 25, 2022

‘Moving Khan al-Ahmar is surrender to the PA, EU’, by Shimon Cohen/Israel National News, January 26, 2022

Yaakov Hagoel’s article in today’s Jerusalem Post for Holocaust Remembrance Day lays out the roots of today’s continued anti-Semitism and the work he has planned to combat it. Yaakov is Chairman of the World Zionist Organization and Acting Chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel.

In an excerpt from the article he states, “The extreme, abysmal, borderless and illogical hatred of Israel is the anti-Semitism of today. The hated Jews who dared to establish a state for themselves that they could finally maintain are now absorbing the thousands-year-old hatred. Young people in the United States and Europe acquire this hatred by virtue of the propaganda spread by various ‘human rights’ organizations. For them, Israel is to blame for all the evil in the world. In order to accomplish this, I am working to recruit heads of state from around the world to officially adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of ‘steps to combat anti-Semitism.’”

Source:
“Outside the club” – Opinion, by Yaakov Hagoel/Jerusalem Post, January 27, 2022

Hundreds of Samaria residents and their supporters went out last Friday to plant trees and build fences around the Samaria town of Pedu’el. This was part of an effort to stop the Palestinian takeover of Area C.

“We came here because this is our country and we will not give it up,” said Yossi Dagan. “We are not waiting for this government. We are here to win for the people of Israel. There will soon be a new neighborhood on this spot. This has always been the case in Zionism – our borders are wherever we work the land. Unfortunately, we are facing complete lawlessness – we see it in Samaria, we see it in the Negev, but we are here in the name of the whole nation of Israel, because the people of Israel will win.”

Source:
Hundreds gather to plant trees in Samaria, by Israel National News, January 21, 2022

Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked intends to bring the amendment to the Citizenship Law for approval by the Knesset this week, two weeks after it was approved by the Ministerial Committee for Legislation.

The purpose of the Family Reunification Law is to curb the flow of Arab families from the Palestinian Authority into Israel proper, by maintaining the status quo and state security.

The failure to pass the Citizenship Law back in July was one of the first failures of Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s coalition. The Opposition and the ruling coalition must come together to work for the sake of the security of the Jewish Nation State, not to mention, for the good of the citizens of Israel and the country overall. If petty politics continue to take preference, Israel’s security is at risk and that is deeply concerning.

The Citizenship Law was intended to strengthen Israel’s security, not burden it. A version written by MK Simcha Rotman who sits in the Religious Zionist appears to have the support of the majority coalition. It puts a cap on the number of citizenship requests that are approved and makes the process more transparent. We pray that the Citizenship Law will be pass as soon as possible.

Source:
Tensions in coalition as Knesset to vote on Citizenship Law, by Israel National News, January 23, 2022

The Palestinian Authority is working to establish 16 schools at strategic locations near Israeli communities in the Jerusalem area with European Union funding.

Over the weekend, the Committee for Combating Settlements, under the auspices of the PLO and the PA and with the direction of its new director Moaid Shaban, set up a permanent structure to serve as a school in Ein Samia near the Israeli community of Kochav Hashahar. Up until recently, tents and shacks owned by Bedouin squatters inhabited the place.

Sources in the PA say that the locations of the buildings planned for construction are not accidental and are intended to prevent the establishment of Israeli communities.

Of course these PA buildings are not intended for educational purposes. Why would we believe otherwise?

Source:
PA Building 16 Schools at Strategic Points in Area C, by Baruch Yedid/TPS

In a special discussion held by the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee (Tuesday, January 18, 2022) initiated by the Land of Israel Lobby, a report was presented by the Ministry of Intelligence that exposes, for the first time, the planned Palestinian project for the takeover of Area C, its  European funding and the Civil Administration’s neglect to enforce the law regarding the Palestinians. Directors of the Land of Israel Lobby: “The battle for Judea and Samaria has reached a critical phase”.

According to the report, the PA, employs about 600 employees in about 100 registration branches of the Lands and Water Authority for a huge project of regulating lands, including those of Area C, with the declared goal of claiming ownership of the area. The regulation project, which gained momentum in 2019 and is expected to be completed by the end of 2022, is sometimes effected by threatening land-owners and it enco

Each day that passes without the application of Sovereignty over Judea and Samaria, the Arabs continue to steal our homeland aided and funded by the European Union.

Source:
The European Union is Investing a half billion dollars in the Palestinian takeover of Area C, by The Sovereignty Movement, January 18, 2022

The UN General Assembly approved an Israeli-sponsored resolution aimed at combating Holocaust denial.

The resolution will provide a specific classification for Holocaust denial, using the working definition put together by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance. It will provide recommendations for how signatory countries can address the phenomenon, and will demand social media networks remove posts that fall under the IHRA definition.

Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan said, “Beyond defining Holocaust distortion and denial, this resolution is a commitment to make sure that this phenomenon will be tolerated no more.”

Sources:
UN General Assembly adopts Israeli resolution on combating Holocaust denial, by Jacob Magid/times of Israel, January 20, 2022

UN adopts Israeli resolution to combat Holocaust denial, by Israel National News, January 20, 2022