Eight years ago on May 20, 2013, Evyatar Borowski was murdered by a Muslim terrorist at the Tapuach Junction in Samaria. He was 31 years old, and left behind a wife and five young children, the oldest of whom was only seven. A settlement was established in his memory on a nearby hilltop, but was quickly demolished by the government. Fast forward eight years.
On May 2nd, 2021, three 19-year-old yeshiva students were waiting for a ride at the Tapuach Junction bus stop. A vehicle with Palestinian license plates pulled up next to the stop and the man sitting in the passenger seat opened fire. All three of the young men were struck, and one, Yehuda Guetta, tragically died from his wounds.
What was the reason this courageous young man died? He died for daring to be a Jew living in the land of his ancestors.
Once again, the settlement movement re-founded the town of Evyatar on the same neighboring hilltop in memory of Evyatar Borowski and Yehuda Guetta. Almost overnight, 50 families moved into the new settlement and roads were paved. Within weeks a nursery, synagogue, water, electricity, and infrastructure were established. Within just a few weeks, the new village of Evyatar was thriving.
This week, a “demarcation order” was issued, signed by the General Command of the Central Command. The order prevents the importation of building materials into the settlement and prohibits anyone from entering the area. Furthermore, residents of the area are required to pack up and leave. Police even sealed off the entrance to make sure that the order was carried out. These actions are simply a precursor to the entire community being demolished.
With Israel’s new government set to be sworn in this Sunday, many decried the fact that the demolition of a settlement in Judea and Samaria would go down in history as Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s last act.
Perhaps to counter that move, Netanyahu asked Defense Minister Benny Gantz to postpone the order until next week, when it will then fall on the new government to make the decision on whether or not to demolish the community.
In an apparent response of defiance, Benny Gantz responded to the prime minister saying that he didn’t need anyone’s approval to evacuate the town of Evyatar.
“There is no instruction whatsoever in the law that declares that issuing an order sealing off an area in Judea and Samaria requires the approval of the Prime Minister,” a Defense Ministry statement said.
Typically, demolition orders are issued against settlements in Judea and Samaria that are built on private Arab land. Since the town of Evyatar was built on state land that belongs to the Samaria Regional Council, it is unclear why action is being taken to destroy it.
Even though a new government is set to be sworn into the Knesset this Sunday, the Defense Ministry is slated to remain in the hands of Benny Gantz, who seems determined to carry through with the evacuation and demolition of Evyatar.
There is another issue that needs to be addressed: why can the people of Israel only establish new towns in their biblical homeland when their friends and families are killed by a terrorist? One might say that Israel’s government is not always favorable towards the settlements, and therefore the leaders of Judea and Samaria must take advantage of the empathy that they receive after a terrorist attack happens. However, there is another reason as to why it is so difficult to build a home in Israel’s heartland.
The international community as a whole condemns any and all construction in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria. Sadly, a large percentage of pro-Israel organizations either try to stay neutral when it comes to the issue of settlements or actually advocate against them.
There are several pro-Israel organizations that claim to have tens of millions of followers. What would happen if these millions of pro-Israel Christians took an unequivocal stand in support of the building up of Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria; the biblical heartland of Israel?
HaYovel is taking its stand with the Jewish people as they settle in their ancient homeland. But that is not enough! We need all of the Christians of the world to stand with the promises of God and His chosen people. Please join us in this worthy cause.
WELKE , JA WELKE MENS ZAL DE G’D VAN ABRAHAM ISAAK EN ISRAEL KUNNEN WEERSTAAN ? WIE ?Lees ZIJN WOORD . IS HET ZIJNE ,Niet het mijne .
Satan has tried to wipe out God’s chosen people since the beginning of time.
But he doesn’t win. I’ve read the end of the Book.
God Bess You all.
“Why don’t the authors of this newsletter put out petitions that Christians around the world could sign and show their support.”
I’m echoing Ken’s suggestion and stand with him on this great idea!
I can do more, but the Israeli government doesn’t want those of us who oppose the poison-injection to enter Israel.