The residents of Amona are receiving 36 promised temporary houses to be erected in their new community of Amichai.
Evicted by the Supreme Court order a year ago, the residents will be able to move into temporary caravillas in the new town near Shiloh.
Yesh Din, a pro-Palestinian legal organization, brought a claim to the Supreme Court in 2008 arguing that the land of Amona belonged to Palestinian owners. The Supreme Court ultimately decided in favor of Yesh Din and ordered the eviction of the entire community, despite arguments from the state that there was no concrete petitioner in the case.
However following the expulsion orders in 2016, residents of Amona protested the decision and vowed not to leave their homes, setting off a standoff with the Israeli government. Nevertheless, both sides came to a last-minute agreement, part of which included their peaceful cooperation in exchange for promises that new homes would be built for some community members in another part of the area, while others would be relocated together to a new community near Shiloh.
The Benyamin Regional Council, which represents the area of Amona and Amichai, issued a statement praising the erection of the new community of Amichai.
“For the first time since the establishment of the settlement enterprise, a community has been officially established at the initiative of the State and by the Council. After a long struggle by the residents of Amona and the incredible efforts of the head of the Benjamin Regional Council and its employees, we are privileged to see the establishment of a new town in Judea and Samaria.”
