Despite requests from right-wing lawmakers, the government asked the Supreme Court on Wednesday for an extension on the execution of a ruling to raze the illegal West Bank Bedouin encampment Khan al-Ahmar for the ninth time.
"The government is firm in its belief that the Palestinians there must be evacuated and the buildings demolished but due to the sensitivity of the issue to Israeli security and foreign affairs, including the interest of the international community, more work must be done to formalize an adequate execution,” the appeal for the extension read.
Some right-wing opposition lawmakers and from the ruling Likud Party criticized the request for an extension until June 1, 2023. Likud MK Danny Danon wrote on his Twitter account: “The government’s attempt to avoid the evacuation of Palestinians from Khan al-Ahmar is a dangerous precedent and encourages illegal construction by Palestinians."
"We were elected to change the previous government’s hesitation on the matter, not to extend it,” Danon added. “It’s still not too late to act and demolish Khan al-Ahmar.”
Yisrael Beiteinu Chairman Avigdor Liberman also denounced the move, writing: “There can’t be one law for Jews and another law for Palestinians.” Liberman took a swipe at far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on Twitter, writing “awake?”
Regavim, a pro-settler NGO that filed for the demolition of the Bedouin hamlet, also disapproved of the extension request, saying they hoped the new government would act as it promised during election season.
“The government was elected to hold back the Palestinian takeover of Area C in the West Bank, but instead all we’re getting is more excuses,” said Regavim head Meir Deutsch, referring to the part of the West Bank that is fully administered by Israel under the Oslo Accords — a series of interim peace agreements signed by Israel and the Palestinians in the 1990s.
“Like Cato the Elder, we still hold the same position as before, and ask our representatives in the government to act in order to remove the outpost and those in it,” Deutsch added, evoking an ancient Roman senator who was known, among other things, for his incessant campaign to convince his compatriots to wipe Rome's arch-foe kingdom Carthage off the face of the planet.
The Supreme Court granted the government its eighth extension back in October 2022.
Likud members arrived at Khan al-Ahmar last week and appealed for the government to complete its demolition. “This is the first test of the new government,” Danon said during the visit.
“I call on [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu, this is your test. We were elected by the public who are expecting a different policy. I hope the government will approve the demolition and give the court an execution date.”
The Khan al-Ahmar saga has been drawn out since 2018 when Prime Minister Netanyahu asked Liberman, then a defense minister in his Cabinet, to postpone the execution of the Supreme Court's ruling to raze the hamlet "to another time", citing concerns by security officials.
Netanyahu told members of his Cabinet at the time that all options must be exhausted first before resorting to force to demolish the encampment, much to their chagrin.
Netanyahu vowed that Khan al-Ahmar will be razed within a short while, but the government had continued to request extensions since.