Not Settlements-Communities!

 Nadene Goldfoot                                             

Fort Hall in Idaho was a goal to reach for many Pioneers.  First constructed in 1834 for the purpose of fur trading, Fort Hall was sold to the British in 1837, became an American fort once again in 1846, and became a key stopover in the 1850’s for travelers of the Oregon Trail. Today, a full scale replica of the Fort, including a saloon, bank, courthouse, church and school, is available to tour in Pocatello, Idaho.  Then settlements developed around it. Starting as a trading post, an estimated 270,000 emigrants reached Fort Hall on their way west. The town of Fort Hall, Idaho later developed 11 miles (18 km) to the east, and Pocatello developed about 30 miles (48 km) south on the Portneuf River. 

           According to accepted definitions:  

large town: population between 60,000 and 174,999. 

medium town: population between 25,000 and 59,999.

 small town: population between 7,500 and 24,999. 

village or small community: population of less than 7,500.

                            An Oklahoma Settlement in 1800s

Calling Jewish communities  in Judea and Samaria as settlements is wrong.  Settlements bring to mind our American pioneers building temporary  dwellings  in the West while they fight off the Indians. (a place, typically one that has hitherto been uninhabited, where people establish a community).  The villages first established in Judea and Samaria are no longer settlements. They are full blown villages, towns and some even at city-size.

The situation is also different.  In the American West, the pioneers who came out had never lived there before.  They were either from the East Coast or directly from Europe. They had no connections or knowledge about Indians, their religion, their life.

You never hear of any Arab villages or towns or cities being called settlements.  Most came after 1881 after the big immigration of Jews, looking for work as they heard that the Jews were building and they might get hired for that work.  There had been some Arabs that were natives, but most all took advantage of the Jewish buyers of land and sold theirs at very high prices, and then they moved to Damascus, Paris, and other more populated places.  They were tired of paying exorbitant taxes to the Ottoman Empire collectors.  

Halamish, also known as Neveh Tzuf, was a community, a village of 280 families in August 2017 in the Samarian hills,  the original land where the Biblical Israel was located.   In 2019 it had a population of 1,485.  Halamish is located off the main road between Ofra and Shilo.  Halamish has been an easy target of arsonists and terrorists, however.  It's an Israeli settlement in the West Bank, located in the southwestern Samarian hills to the north of Ramallah, an Arab community,  10.7 kilometers (6.648672 miles)  east of the Green line. The Orthodox Jewish community was established in 1977. 45 years ago.

They had a tragedy there on July 21, 2017 when Yosef Salomon, 70, his daughter Chaya, 40, and his son, Elad 35, father of five were killed.  Yosef's wife, Tova, was seriously wounded. That's 3 people killed by a terrorist.   They had been celebrating the birth of Yosef's new grandson  with his other son, Shmuel.                         

                 Kobar Village

The terrorist, a member of a Hamas-affiliated family from the nearby Palestinian village of Kobar, a Palestinian village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate in the northern Samaria (West Bank), who .had been arrested several times before and was known to the security services.  He posted a Facebook message boasting of his plans, but no one informed the police.  That night, he climbed over the perimeter fence, attacked the Salomon family in their home, and was wounded by an off-duty soldier who lived nearby.  In the wake of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, and after the 1949 Armistice Agreements, Kobar came under Jordanian rule.  The Jordanian census of 1961 found 934 inhabitants in Kaubar.  Since the Six-Day War in 1967, Kobar has been under Israeli ruling.  

After the 1995 accords, 53.7 % of village land belongs to Area B, which is to be populated by both Jews and Muslims, while the remaining 46.3 % is Area C.  Area C is Jewish land according to the Oslo Accords.  

                                          

In 2008, the Hamas preacher at the local mosque in Kobar, Majed Barghouti, 44, died while in detention. His relatives alleged that he had been tortured.  Authorities confirmed the death of the 44-year-old Majed Barghouti at an intelligence lockup in Ramallah on Friday, a week after his arrest.  This is an Hamas accusation.  Israel did not torture him.  

Ofra is a religious community-style yishuv with a population of 3,500,, a village located in the Binyamin Regional Council. It is just off of Highway 60. Ofra is about 20 km (12.4274 miles)  north of Jerusalem, with an altitude of about 850 meters above sea level.  The yishuv was established in 1975, 47 years ago, and named after the ancient Jewish town in the portion of the tribe of Binyamin, as mentioned in the book of Joshua, Chapter 18.  So it's in the land allocated to the Tribe of Benjamin.  It's mostly religious people who have moved to Judea and Samaria for their historical connection, land of our fathers.             

Shiloh:  A Bit of Background: Shiloh is a religious community-style yishuv established in 1978, 44 years ago.   The original founders strived to establish a community that would live its life in the spirit of the Torah and continue the tradition of the spiritual center that existed in Shiloh during the period of the Mishkan (Tabernacle).  Shiloh is situated just east of the Jerusalem-Nablus road, 31 km (19.2625 miles)  north of Jerusalem. It was identified unambiguously with Khirbet Seilun, based on the much detailed biblical description of the site:  Named for ancient Shilo, Shiloh (/ˈʃaɪloʊ/; Hebrew: שִׁלֹה, שִׁלוֹ ,שִׁילֹה, and שִׁילוֹ variably; Arabic: شيلوه) was an ancient city and sanctuary in Samaria. According to the Hebrew Bible, Shiloh was the central sanctuary of the Israelites during the pre-monarchic period, before the First Temple in Jerusalem was built.  It was the 1st cult center of the Israelite religion after the conquest of Canaan under Joshua which was 25 miles north of Jerusalem in the mountains of Ephraim.  The Ark and Tabernacle were kept there during the period of the Judges, serving as a central national shrine.  

There are currently about 400 families living in the yishuv,probably still a village,  which serves as a regional center in terms of schools, agriculture, shopping and employment, for all of the smaller yishuvim in the area. The yishuv is a significant point of attraction for families interested in building their homes and joining the community, and it has been blessed with several construction initiatives that are expanding its borders.  Shiloh has a daycare center, 6 kindergartens and a special education kindergarten, Mifgash - a therapy center, separate elementary schools for boys and girls, a Yeshiva high school for boys and an Ulpana for girls, a Yeshiva and a Kollel.

 Yishuv, Ha-Yishuv, or Ha-Yishuv Ha-Ivri  is the body of Jewish residents in the Land of Israel prior to the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.  So Yishuv means the Jewish population living in Samaria before 1948, sort of like a Sabra is a person born in Israel, native-born.   The Old Yishuv refers to all the Jews living in the Land of Israel before the first Zionist immigration wave (aliyah) of 1882, and to their descendants who kept the old, non-Zionist way of life until 1948.The Old Yishuv residents were religious Jews, living mainly in Jerusalem, Safed, Tiberias, and Hebron. There were smaller communities in Jaffa, Haifa, Peki'in, Acre, Nablus, Shfaram, and until 1779 also in Gaza. In the final centuries before modern Zionism, a large part of the Old Yishuv spent their time studying the Torah and lived off charity (halukka), donated by Jews in the Diaspora.

 The term New Yishuv refers to those who adopted a new approach, based on economic independence and various national ideologies, rather than strictly religious reasons for settling in the "Holy Land", for Judea and Samaria were certainly part of the Holy Land that Britain was given the 30 year mandate for-to help the Jews create their Holy Land.

           Jewish yishuv in Rishon Lezion, 1882  

 The precursors already began building homes outside the Old City walls of Jerusalem in the 1860s, followed soon after by the founders of the moshava of Petah Tikva, and fully getting in swing with the First Aliyah of 1882, followed by the founding of neighbourhoods and villages until the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.  Even they haven't called themselves "settlements."

Resource:

The Jerusalem Report, August 21, 2017, magazine, p. 7

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halamish

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiloh_(biblical_city)#:~:text=Shiloh%20(%2F%CB%88%CA%83a%C9%AAl,Temple%20in%20Jerusalem%20was%20built.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kobar

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yishuv

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Hall

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-13331522

https://grammar.yourdictionary.com/vs/difference-between-a-city-and-a-town-defining-places.html

 

A Supreme Court Case About Land in Samaria: The village, Amona

borrowed list                                           

Amona, Samaria residents now near Shilo looking at land to build on
Amon was a king of Judah who reigned from 642 bCE to 640 BCE. HIs father was king Manasseh and he ruled for 2 years before being killed by conspirators.  I don't know if that's where their name came from or not.  "Amona, which was built on land purchased from Palestinian Authority  (PA) Arabs, has been deemed illegal by the Israeli Supreme Court, which has rejected the validity of the deeds to the land provided by the town’s founders.

Nadene Goldfoot

Jordan held Judah and Samaria (West Bank) from 1948 to 1967 June 11th.  )

I've heard it said that Law in Israel is much more complicated than in the USA because you have the Ottoman Empire law and Israel's law to consider, and now I see also-Jordanian law in the mix.  You see it happen a lot in renting homes in Jerusalem, at least back in 1980 when a lawyer friend of ours gave up his practice and decided to teach in high school--another big mistake.    

                                                                          

Israel's Ministry of Defense had to forcefully dismantle Amona, a village near Ofra.  They plan to build a replacement near Shilo of  139 housing units.
Shilo is 25 miles north of Jerusalem in the mountains of Ephraim.  The Ark and Tabernacle were kept there during the period of Judges.  

The village of Amona has been dismanatled by the Israeli authorities after these past 20 years of living there. . The village of 40 Jewish families had prior but illegal claims on it, land that sat on top of a bald mountain in Samaria (northern part of Judea-Samaria "West Bank.") . Israel does try hard to follow the law. I wonder what American lawyers would have said in defense of these families. Two  sides of the debate over this decision are below.  It's a conundrum for lawyers.  

1. Jordan had no right to parcel out lands When the Amona case first reached the Supreme Court, a representative of the land registrar for the IDF Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) argued that despite the fact that the location was a bald and abandoned mountaintop, there existed documented parcels of land which had been registered by the Jordanian government as belonging to area sheiks and clans. However, as an invading and occupying power, Jordan had no right to award these lands. Jordan’s rule over the "West Bank" was not recognized by the vast majority of UN member states save for the UK and Pakistan, and so this local Arab "ownership" is based on a lie.

2. Only 0.5% of the Amona land is registered to private Arab owners.   After the Supreme Court had ruled in their favor, anti-Israeli NGO Yesh Din, which has been at the forefront of the Lawfare attacks on the Jewish State, decided to sue for damages over the years of denied use of the parcels in question. The problem is that while the Supreme Court does not entertain evidence, lower courts do, and in Jerusalem Magistrate Court it was discovered that out of the nine Arab petitioners, seven own land that is entirely outside the Amona perimeter, and have had no problem working their land had they been so inclined. The remaining two owned only a sliver – about half an acre altogether, out of the 125 acres of the Amona territory – less than .5%. The remaining land is registered to names of non-existent people who do not appear in the 1967 census.

                                                                                     

Arresting young woman unwilling to leave Amona
Moving out of one's home is never easy.
Being forced is worse still.  

3. COGAT didn’t differentiate between the parcels with known and unknown ownership Despite the above facts, the COGAT prosecution related to the parcels whose owners are unknown as being privately owned, declaring that some 15 acres in the southern part of the settlement belonged to real private owners. They then told the court that, in fact, there was no difference between the various parts of the community and that the half-acre that became 15 acres was, in effect, indistinguishable from the rest, and the entire community had to come down.

4. The Settlement Arrangements Act does not violate international law Regarding the Settlement Arrangements Act, which the left, as well as senior Netanyahu cabinet officials, are saying violates international law, former Tel Aviv University president and international law expert Prof. Yoram Dinstein has argued that "when an occupier appropriates the power to legislate in an occupied territory, said power belongs to the occupying state and not to one of its organs (COGAT)." In a recent article, Prof. Dinstein has shown how international law is entirely indifferent regarding the particular mechanics of legislation in an occupied zone, be it the local general or be it the government that posted said general in said zone.

5. International law compels Israel to care for the rights of Jewish and Arab resident.   Another popular argument against the Settlement Arrangements Act is that it violates international law because it sanctions the impounding of Arab owned land for the sake of a Jewish community. However, it has been noted that international law compels the occupier to care for the needs of all the civilians under its rule, Jews and Arabs alike, and the right of a government to expropriate private property for public use, with proper payment of compensation (eminent domain) is inherent in exerting such care.

6. The Settlement Arrangements Act is consistent with the pre-67 law in Judea and Samaria This one is quite interesting. Unbeknownst to many, the Settlement Arrangements Act is consistent with the legal systems that were in use in Judea and Samaria before 1967. Both Ottoman law and Jordanian law determine that in a case where a man built and planted in good faith land belonging to another, should the value of the construction exceed the value of the land, the land owner is compelled to receive compensation.

                                                                           

7. Israel legislates retroactively when needed.   Another argument against the Settlement Arrangements Act is that it retroactively alters a court ruling. But the state of Israel regularly legislates retroactively, as in the amendment that reversed many hundreds of court sentences of Arab terrorists, to facilitate the Gilad Shalit deal with Hamas.

8. The Settlement Arrangements Act is not unconstitutional

Finally, the most crucial argument against the Settlement Arrangements Act is that it is unconstitutional – the constitution in this case being Israel’s Basic Laws. Setting aside the paradox whereby one Knesset law is inapplicable in the territories while the same Knesset’s basic laws are applicable – does Israel’s basic law really dictate that 40 families with their 200 children who have lived in Amona for 20 years be evicted to satisfy the alleged rights of two claimants who own less than .5% of the land and have never lived there? Has the court become so immoral as to be the enemy of its constituents without any foundation?

Where is King Solomon when we need him?  Maybe he could find a fair ruling.  

Netanyahu now has decided to build 4,000 homes in Judea-Samaria, and Amona is something he does not want to have to repeat again. That it had to be dismantled is one of the reasons he is going ahead with the building to my understanding. .When you read that his 4,000 is on land owned by private people, etc., understand through this Amona case that it is not at all as easy to distinguish as what would happen in the USA or other countries.  Israel has a 3-ply law, layers of different laws to work through to come to a decision.  

JNi.Media

About the Author: JNi.Media provides editors and publishers with high quality Jewish-focused content for their publications.

Resource:  http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/eight-crucial-things-you-need-to-know-about-the-amona-case/2017/02/01/

Nadene Goldfoot