Residents stunned at further delay in establishment of new Amona community
The legal advisor to the West Bank has expressed opposition to approving a necessary legal injunction required for establishing temporary living quarters on the site of the new Amona settlement recently approved.
A week after the decision was made to establish the new community, residents now fear that there is a chance it may not come to pass.
The establishment of a temporary community requires—by law—the issuance of a special injunction. The injunction is largely a procedural matter that can take several days.
However, during a meeting at the Ministry of Justice, the legal advisor to the West Bank, Eyal Toledano, expressed his opposition to the move, which is currently preventing the establishment of the temporary community.
Instead of issuing an injunction, Civil Administration officials suggested setting up the settlement utilizing the process of setting up city building plans, thus bypassing the need for establishing a temporary site (and all the legal red tape associated with it).
Former residents of Amona claim that every delay is actually an attempt to sabotage the establishment of a new community.
"We don't believe the prime minister will allow something like this to happen. After the cabinet unanimously approved the prime minister's decision, and after the entire government supported the decision, it would be a slap in the face to the government, the cabinet and the prime minister (not to establish the community)," said residents.
A senior settler official said, "This issue is a critical matter that leaves us stunned. If the injunction is not issued, the establishment of the settlement could take years and no one can promise what the future will bring. This development definitely surprised us."
(Translated and edited by Fred Goldberg)
