PM rep. tells Amona settlers they 'should bow down before Netanyahu'
During a meeting intended to reach a compromise between the government and Amona settlers, PMO Bureau Chief Yoav Horowitz loses temper and yells at settlers, 'We've been working on this night and day,' calling on them to be more grateful.
The evacuation of the illegal outpost of Amona once again came up upon an obstacle during a recent meeting between government officials and representatives from the outpost that descended into shouting.
The meeting, held a few days ago at the Prime Minister's Office, included PMO Bureau Chief Yoav Horowitz, Education Minister Naftali Bennett's bureau chief Tal Gan-Zvi, Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked's bureau chief Yair Hirsh, Binyamin Regional Council Head Avi Roeh and representatives of Amona.
As the meeting went on, the discussion became more and more aggressive. At some point, Horowitz reportedly lashed out at the settlers' representatives and said, "We've been working on this night and day.The prime minister has dedicated 60% of his time to Amona. He and his entire staff are dealing with this for most of their day. You should bow down before Netanyahu for saving the settlement."
Representatives of Amona responded in turn. "If the state won't stand by its commitment and we find out you've deceived us, all our friends are going to come to Amona and we're going to blow it up. Is that what Netanyahu wants? For all of us to blow up in Amona?"
Gan-Zvi, for his part, stressed that "The only way we might be able to make some progress if a task force will be assigned." He also demanded that the prime minister pressure Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories Maj. Gen. Yoav Mordechai to expedite matters. Representing Netanyahu, Horowitz responded that the prime minister's sway is limited in that regard.
Amona's evacuation was postponed by Supreme Court President Miriam Naor for the beginning of February after its residents agreed to a peaceful evacuation. The current stress and anxiety among the settlers is derived from the fact that despite having reached agreements to take care of the needs of the evacuated settlers, there have not been developments toward this end on the ground. In addition, Plot 38—the main plot on which new settler buildings were supposed to be built—fell through due to legal issues.
In an internal document made public on Ynet for the first time, Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit explicitly stated that the plot cannot be built on. "As events develped, the decision to approve a plan to have 12 housing units on Plot 38 was based on the understanding that it is considered abandoned property. The factual evidence regarding this was found to be fundamentally different. As such, the Israeli Civil Administration should decide whether to keep the plan as is or cancel it,' wrote Mandelblit.
The ramifications of this finding is that with the evacuation looming a month away, currently there is not a single piece of land upon which the state could set up housing units. Amona activists are responding to this reality by calling on young settlers to be prepared to flood the outpost if thir demands are not met and push comes to shove.
