Migron residents: We were sent here on a mission

Day after High Court orders outpost's evacuation by August 1, settlers tell reporters Netanyahu obligated to find 'just solution' to their plight

Yair Altman|Published: 03.26.12 , 15:22

"We were sent by the Israeli government to carry out a mission here, the High Court buried our (compromise) agreement with the State, and now the ball is in (Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu's hands," a resident of Migron said Monday, a day after the court ruled that the West Bank outpost must be evacuated by August 1.

"We will not be included in any agreement that will lead the outpost's destruction," one of Migron's residents told a press conference.

"We built this community with the help of the State of Israel's various branches," said Chaim Teitelbaum, whose home in Migron was razed a few months ago.

"We demand that the prime minister live up to the agreements. The High Court determined that Israel may send its citizens on pioneering missions without bearing any responsibility for the outcome of these missions. The ball is entirely in Netanyahu's hands – and he will find a just solution," he told reporters.

Itay Harel, who founded Migron, said during the press conference, "We arrived here more than 12 years ago and built this community with the government's assistance. There was no one here when we arrived, and until Peace Now made (local Palestinians) aware of this land, they never even thought about it."

The court determined that Migron was built on private Palestinian land and annulled a compromise agreement that would delay the settlers' relocation to nearby State-owned land until November 2015.

The residents of Migron issued a statement saying that the court's ruling was based on a "fabricated tale of private ownership of the land" and would result in the "expulsion of peace-seeking people."

The residents rejected the possibility of relocating to the Adam settlement temporarily.