If these walls could talk: An Amona resident says goodbye to her home
The Nizri family, one of the leaders of the fight against the evacuation of Amona, is saying goodbye to their home; 'This was our place, that this was our land; this was our home.'
On Wednesday afternoon, police officers came to evacuate the Nizri family, one of the leaders of the failed fight against the evacuation of Amona. Their house was crowded with teenage opponents of the evacuation, which continued as planned. The family's matriarch, Tamar Nizri spoke to the troops upon their entrance: "You, the soldiers, have the power of choice; I beg you to be loyal to your values. You do not need to do this."
In the middle of the commotion, a group of young teenage girls was sitting on the floor, crying profusely and singing hymns and encouraging each other. The forces started evacuating the bedrooms, slowly making their way to the living room. The shouts and the singing mixed together. The members of the Nizri family appeared reserved as they kept a veneer of tranquility.
Tamar, who was seen wiping a tear from her eyes during the last moments in her home recounted the story of how she had constructed her house in the outpost, to which she was now saying goodbye: "I would like to bid my house farewell. Dear House, 17-and-a-half years ago, when I already had two daughters and a baby on the way, I felt I could no longer live in a temporary accomodation. I wanted a real house, and we felt that this was our place, that this was our land. We took all our savings, our parents helped us, we received a grant from the state and Yehoyada (her husband) designed this house. We built it ourselves."
"Dear House, I am so happy we built you 16 years ago. It was so good living here. I don't regret a day we spent here, I don't regret a dime we invested in this house. We went through 16 years in this house, through birthdays, holidays, the upbringing of our children, joys and sadness; an entire life. Your walls are suffused with love and songs. God Almighty, thank you from the bottom of our hearts for all the goodness you've showered upon us over the past 16 years," she continued.
Nizri then thanked the dozens of teenagers who came to support them, by saying, "Dear, sweet teens, you're the best. Our power is the power of the Israeli people. Our power is your power."
"I am proud of you and I love you; do more with your power and strength," she continued.
Revital Halberstadt, an Amona resident, told Ynet in an interview, "We spent all day in Amona until the police officers came knocking. With great sadness, we left the house we built with our own hands—my husband and I. We will be here, in the Talmudic study center in Ofra, welcoming the families trickling in, hugging and crying together, and then we will go to our house, to be with our family and the kids."
"Several weeks will pass before an appropriate solution will be found for each evacuated family. It is a shame that the state didn't do this earlier. It's a shame that they waited until the last minute," she added.
During the hours of the afternoon, Locked Garden operation continued in the outpost's evacuation as per the Supreme Court's order, and so are the violent confrontations. Ever since the operation started at 11am, 16 police officers were injured, 11 of which were evacuated to hospitals in the area. The condition of one of the officers is considered moderate. The police stated that the evacuation will continue into the night.
Police arrested at least thirteen rioters and removed approximately 200 youths from the outpost.
Police officers participating in the evacuations were seen physically carrying evacuees out of their houses. Two protesters climbed on top of a roof and started hurling objects at the officers.
