Thousands of rightists arrive in Homesh
Rally held in evacuated West Bank settlement authorized by army, attended by rabbis, yeshiva heads, MKs and public figures
Thousands of settlers and right-wing activists arrived at the evacuated West Bank settlement of Homesh on Tuesday. The trip was authorized by the army, and security forces accompanied the activists to the site.
The rally held in the area was organized by a number of rightist groups to mark 40 years since the “liberation of Jerusalem, the Golan Heights, the West Bank and Gaza”.
According to the IDF, 6,000 people arrived at the former settlement, while right-wing activists claimed that the number was higher than 10,000.
The rally took place in the afternoon with rabbis, heads of yeshivas, members of Knesset, public figures and leaders of the settlement.
Rabbi Haim Druckman, head of the Beni Akiva Yeshiva, said during the rally that "Homesh is part of the Land of Israel and there is no reason for it to remain destroyed."
During the rally, right-wing activists held a picture of one of the streets in the evacuated settlement, as part of the intention to rebuild Homesh. The rally ended with no unusual incidents, and the activists left the area.
Thousands attend Homesh rally (Photo: Yoshai Hollander)
Settlers last marched to Homesh at the end of April; seven settlers were detained during clashes with security forces at the time.
“We call on the Israeli government to rebuild Homesh and Sa-Nur, and the rest of the northern Samaria and Gaza Strip communities in order to deal a blow to the enemies who are threatening Sderot and surrounding communities,” leading religious Zionist rabbis said in a statement distributed ahead of Tuesday’s march.
Pamphlets distributed to those on their way to Homesh said, "We are all on our way to Homesh with hoes and rakes, beginning to prepare the ground for our return."
