Barak rescinds orders to demolish settlement homes

Defense Minister Ehud Barak prevented the demolition of settler homes built on Palestinian land, it has emerged from the state's response to a High Court petition filed on behalf of the Palestinian residents.

Five residents of the Ein Yabrud village filed the petition in June 2008 through attorneys Michael Sfard and Shlomi Zacharia against the defense minister and IDF Central Command chief, Major-General Gadi

Shamni. They demanded that Barak, Shamni and other officials enforce stop-work orders and issue demolition orders for nine structures built as part of the settlement of Ofra. The plaintiffs said the structures were built on land belonging to Ein Yabrud.

A month after the petition was filed, the High Court of Justice issued an interim order instructing the state not to populate the buildings, and to avoid any further construction.

The state claims that in December 2008 the defense minister himself was the one to instruct that the demolition orders issued by his office not be carried out.

"In this matter the defense minister factored in that the issues regarding these nine structures are true for many houses in Ofra," the state wrote in its response.

"Since these homes were populated months ago, and since these are homes that are inside the community itself and not on its outskirts, the larger picture about all of Ofra must be reviewed.

The state described the chain of events that led to issuing of the demolition orders. It also said that the question of implementing the orders would be brought up before the defense minister. The state further said that the construction in the outskirts of the settlement would be reviewed as part of the general inquiry into illegal construction in the West Bank. It said that the defense minister has ordered the

enforcement of all zoning and construction laws inside Ofra.

Shlomi Zacharia, an attorney for the plaintiffs, spoke with Ynet after reading the state's response: "The defense minister's response reaffirms that the fate of all of Ofra corresponds with that of the nine houses, meaning that most (of the settlement) is illegal, and constitutes ongoing land theft from the local Palestinians. The defense minister's continuous evasion of his duties towards the Palestinian population is shameful."

The Yesha Council responded to the State's position on the matter by stating, "We believe the Defense Ministry is acting responsibly by refusing to be dragged into the extreme leftist movement Yesh Din's legal provocations."

The Binyamin Settlers’ Committee also responded positively, and stated that "the decision is an encouraging sign that the Defense Ministry will cease to succumb to the pressure of the extreme, anti-Zionist Left, which has been systematically dismantling the Zionist vision over recent years."

Efrat Weiss contributed to this report