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Settler protest march in Gush Katif, April 2005
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| By Israel Insider staff and partners April 19, 2007 |
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The Israel Defense Forces has reversed an earlier decision to allow settlers to march to the ruins of the community Homesh on Independence Day, military officials told march organizers Friday. The reversal set the stage for a potential confrontation between the IDF and marchers, ten thousand of whom had been expected to participate in the event.
Citing 'appraisal of the current situation' as the reason for the turnaround, military officials advised march organizers that the IDF would no longer allow it to take place as planned.
But organizers reportedly intend to go ahead with the march, despite the ban.
Gen. Yair Naveh, head of the Central Command, said a day earlier that supporters of restoring a Jewish presence at the site would be allowed to celebrate Independence Day Tuesday on condition they leave at the end of the festivities.
The IDF backtracking may have been imposed by the political echelon -- perhaps in implicit criticism for Naveh's remarks Thursday that the expulsion of Jews and destruction of Homesh and more than 24 other Jewish communities may have been an error.
According to the hebrew Web site of the Maariv daily newspaper, NRG, Naveh said: "The year 2007 is characterized by the fact that all the leaders are weak at home." He said the disengagement was motivated not by security but by politics, whose motives may eventually be investigated. Naveh is to complete his tour of duty and military service in a month.
Yossi Dagan, an organizer of the event had applauded the previous decision: "There is no greater gift for Independence Day than to return to the Zionist values of building and ideology. We will march up to Homesh with thousands of people, in a beautiful and joyous manner."
This year marks the 59th anniversary of Israel's rebirth as a nation in its ancient homeland. It also marks the 40th year since Jews were able to return to the Gaza Strip, Judea, Samaria, and the Old City of Jerusalem following the Six Day War in 1967.
Officials told Army Radio that permission would be granted and security provided for such a march if the evacuees request it. The evacuated area is legally considered a closed military zone.
Approximately a month ago, at the end of March, former Homesh settlers returned to the site in an attempt to resettle it. However, they were evacuated without incident several days later.
Jerusalem Newswire contributed to this article. |
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