Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich on Tuesday ordered the immediate evacuation of Khan al-Ahmar, a contested Judean Desert site where Palestinian Bedouin have illegally erected buildings and dwellings.
Smotrich—who also serves as a minister in Israel’s Defense Ministry responsible for civilian matters in Judea and Samaria—instructed Hillel Roth, his representative in the Civil Administration, to take “all necessary measures” to carry out the move as soon as possible, his office said.
Jerusalem has sought for years to relocate the community, which is located in the strategic E1 corridor between Jerusalem and Ma’ale Adumim.
Speaking at a press conference in Jerusalem earlier on Tuesday, Smotrich said the evacuation was part of Jerusalem’s retaliation against the Palestinian Authority, which he accused of having brought about a request for a secret arrest warrant against him at the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
“The prosecutor submitted a request for arrest warrants. Whether they will actually be issued or not, we do not know; they also do not want us to know; this is part of the tactic,” Smotrich told reporters.
“What is certain is that the Palestinian Authority and its people stand behind this entire process,” he said. “They stand behind the legal warfare at the ICC and the International Court of Justice.”
Smotrich described the legal efforts against top Israeli officials at the ICC and ICJ as “not a diplomatic struggle and not a legal struggle,” but rather “a declaration of war by a hostile entity against the State of Israel.”
“When war is waged against us, we must respond forcefully,” he declared. “I promise all our enemies: This is only the beginning.”
“From today onward, every economic or other target I can act against within my authority as finance minister or as a minister in the Defense Ministry will be targeted—not with words and gimmicks, but with actions,” he added.
