Likud members of Knesset Tzipi Hotobeli, Danny Danon, and Yaron Levin, as well as National Union MK Michael Ben-Ari, toured Hevron on Sunday.
Hotobeli called the tour “a corrective measure" (tikkun) to the agreement the Likud made during the Wye Accords.” As part of the Wye Accords signed in 1998 under U.S. pressure, then-Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu handed control over most of Hevron to the Palestinian Authority, leading to a terror wave against its Jewish population.
Baruch Marzel, MK Danon, MK Hotobeli, Orit Shtrook
The tour was led by Hevron Jewish community leader Noam Arnon, who discussed the rich history of Hevron in both the ancient and modern periods. Orit Shtrook, the head of the Judea and Samaria Human Rights Organization also joined the tour. She largely spoke about the legal rights of the Jewish community to own land in Hevron. MK Ben-Ari’s consultant Baruch Marzel, who lives in Hevron, also participated. Ben Ari called the tour “a positive change of direction for the new Likud MKs.”
All four MKs were very enthusiastic about the tour and called for the Likud-led government to support Hevron and other Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria. As Danon said, “The fact that we came here today is an important message of identification with the Jews of Hevron. We will try to help Hevron as well as Kiryat Arba, and all the Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria.”
MK Levin deplored the government’s actions against the Hevron community, such as in the evacuations of the Peace House and the nearby Federman Farm. “As compared to the strength of the residents here, the government’s weakness is very apparent. Not only has it failed to help the Jewish communities, but it has established harsh decrees against them,” he said. “I will work with the Jewish residents to enlarge and strengthen their communities.”