Gush Etzion, the region of Judea just south of Jerusalem, is being sliced by the route of the Partition Wall. Efforts are being made by activists to fight the wall, but it is quickly becoming a fact on the ground.
The Gush Etzion municipality held a ceremony Monday renaming the intersection leading to the northern entrance of the central town of Efrat after the convoys that used to brave the hostile terrain during the War of Independence to bring supplies to the Jewish settlers of the region.
Residents were informed that Minister of Transportation Shaul Mofaz was being honored at the ceremony and decided to protest his role in the Disengagement. (Click here to read more about the controversy surrounding the visit)
In the end, the ceremony took place with respect for the veteran Gush fighters who came out for the renaming, while Mofaz was shouted down, his voice drowned out by residents saying they have not forgotten the expulsion from Gush Katif.
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The Efrat North Junction was renamed Shayarot Etzion (Etzion Convoys) Junction Monday in the hope of preventing it from being left outside the Partition Wall in the future.
One of the original bullet-proof buses, owned by Egged and now residing at a museum, was revived and used to transport some of the original passengers to the ceremony.
One of the men who led the dangerous convoy from Jerusalem south to Gush Etzion to bring supplies to the residents and fighters disembarks to cheers from the crowd.
Datya Yitzchaki, evicted from her seaside home in the community of Kfar Yam in Gush Katif is told by police that her flag and sign are not allowed. She says residents were invited to the ceremony and not limited by what they could wear or hold. The police officer backs down.
Fighters of the Etzion convoys were honored at the ceremony by protesters and dignitaries alike.
Mofaz, who was Defense Minister during the Disengagement, arrives and tension washes over the crowd. Whistles are sounded and boos shouted along with cries of "We have not forgotten!"
Transport Minister Shaul Mofaz's bodyguard briefs a Yassam riot police commander on procedure in the event of disturbances during Mofaz's visit.
Mofaz is surrounded by bodyguards.
Schoolchildren were brought to the event by the municipality, which did not anticipate their joining the protest against Mofaz and his invitation.
Children, who today ride modern bulletproof buses, daily, due to sniper attacks, explore the inside of the old armored bus.
Transport Minister Shaul Mofaz (left) and Gush Etzion Mayor and Senior Yesha Council Member Shaul Goldstein (right)
Mayor Shaul Goldstein delivered a moving address about the significance of Gush Etzion before thanking and introducing Mofaz.
Protesters began shouting down Mofaz the moment he was introduced, holding up placards such as this one, which reads: "The Heroes of 1948 gave their lives in order to protect the Land of Israel - not so it could be handed over to murderers!"
Protesters continue to yell, boo and whistle as the municipality turns up the volume on the PA system. "Mofaz-Expulsion Criminals are not welcome in Gush Etzion" reads a placard.
Two Arab Reuters cameramen tape Datya Yitzchaki protesting.
The crowd heads toward the road, where the new sign will be unveiled.
Veterans and municipality members wait until the press is assembled to pull the string that is to unveil the new sign. After a failed pull, the sign is finally revealed. Arab motorists driving in and out of PA-controlled Bethlehem through a recently opened road gawk at the scene.
A vehicle from Eyal Arad's PR firm parked near the ceremony has a bumper sticker affixed to it by protesters reading "Expulsion Criminals to Justice." Arad, before being hired by the Gush Etzion municipality to handle its PR, oversaw the marketing of the Disengagement for the Sharon government.
Click here and here for background on the internal debate between activists and the Yesha Council
Click here for an article on the grassroots initiatives behind the Mofaz protest and others
(Photos: Ezra HaLevi)
