A House in Amona destroyed by Israeli forces in 2006. History repeating itself?
We received the following letter in an email earlier today, from our friend Elad in Amona, containing a letter written by one of the leaders of the community, Avichai Buaron. The Israeli government expelled Amona’s residents last week and is now in the process of destroying homes that were built 20 years ago; homes where Jewish pioneers – the bravest of the brave – have lived under harsh and dangerous conditions for two decades.
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We are in a race against time in order to get our belongings out of Amona, before they destroy everything there.
I am sending you something that Avichai Buaron wrote on the day of expulsion.
Exactly eleven years ago today in 2006, the residents of Amona were evicted from their homes in the infamous pogrom-like destruction of this community.
Eleven years have passed, and today the spiteful left-wing organizations have completed their mission: Achieving the complete and total destruction of the community of Amona. We build, and they destroy. We plant, and they uproot us. We make the desert bloom and they turn it back into dust.
This is a black day for the nation of Israel, a dark day for Zionism and for the return to Zion. It is a black day for us, the residents of Amona, victims of the decree that uproots us from our homes and our homeland.
This is also a black day for this government, and its leaders Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, Education Minister Naftali Bennett and the other Cabinet Ministers who must account for personally allowing the destruction of a blossoming, twenty-year-old community and the exile of its residents.
It was the people of Amona who composed and promoted the ‘Law of Regulation’ one year ago, when others did not believe it was possible. Amona was omitted at the very last minute. The residents of Amona wrote and promoted the ????? ???? ??????, while Justice Department officials and the Civil Authority did all they could to kill the initiative – and they succeeded.
Yet most glaring is the behavior of our political leadership, whose responsibility it was to prevent erasing an entire, established community of three hundred people. They did not do enough to prevent the fall of Amona, and they have failed. Today, we look straight into the eyes of Bibi and Bennet, Shaked and Lieberman, and we say: You’ve failed. You promised and did not follow through. You promised fifty-two new homes here on the hill, and you did not keep your promise. You promised a thriving community and you failed; you promised your voters that on your watch, we would not remove Jews from their homes – and you lied. You did not come through.
We, the people of Amona, call upon the wonderful, idealistic youth who have come here to be with us, to listen: We have struggled heroically and respectfully. Continue this way. Respect us and respect yourselves. Do not be violent. Resist passively, and use no violence. Violence means forcing a child from their desk, or removing them from their playground. Evicting a family from their home is violence.
In the past year, we the residents of Amona have fought the battle of our lives to save our homes and our community of Amona. With broken hearts we leave here, with tears in our eyes and our heads held high, and we swear to our homeland: We will return. We, or our children – the day is not far when we will return here to Amona.
Thank you so much for your support.
Elad Ziv
Resolute and Determined:
Trump Supporters WILL NOT BE INTIMIDATED!
AFSI’s Charlie Bernhaut, Helen Freedman & Judy Kadishshowing support for President Donald TrumpSunday, February 5, in front of Trump Tower, NYC
(photo: Karen Lichtbraun)
On a sunny but chilly Sunday afternoon, supporters of President Trump braved the cool weather and swarms of tourists on Fifth Avenue in front of Trump Tower, to tell the world:
DONALD TRUMP IS OUR PRESIDENT AND MUST BE GIVEN A CHANCE TO LEAD.
Since President Trump’s inauguration, there have been hundreds of anti-Trump rallies around the country, many of them violent and filled with language not worthy of the gutter. Yesterday, those who believe in democracy and the rule of law said, “enough is enough.” President Trump was elected democratically, according to the laws of our country, and it is time for the entire nation to accept it.
AFSI’s Co-Executive Director, Helen Freedman, was one of the many speakers at the pro-Trump rally. Carrying an Israeli flag, she emphasized that the USA and JerUSAlem are entwined, since USA makes up the middle letters of Israel’s capital city. She also stressed the promises Trump made while campaigning regarding moving the US embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, and keeping a hands-off policy regarding settlement building. The crowd was with her all the way.
