Sovereignty vigil in front of PM's Residence
Sovereignty vigil in front of PM's ResidenceWomen in Green

The Women in Green movement, which advocates Jewish sovereignty over Judea and Samaria, expressed their support for Economics Minister Naftali Bennett's recent comments promoting sovereignty, and announced a week-long vigil in front of the Prime Minister's Residence.

Yehudit Katsover and Nadia Matar, heads of the movement, wrote to Bennett congratulating him for his condemnation of the proposal from the prime minister's office that Israel cede land and leave Jews under Palestinian Authority (PA) control.

“The idea of leaving Jews under Palestinian sovereignty indicates a loss of Zionist direction that will bring about a deterioration in spiritual, security and material matters," write the two women.

Katsover and Matar took the opportunity to invite Bennett to join their upcoming "Mothers say YES to Israeli Sovereignty over Judea, Samaria and the Jordan Valley" vigil in Jerusalem.

Starting Sunday, February 2 and running until the following Sunday, February 9, the vigil will take place in front of the Prime Minister's Residence in Jerusalem from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Women in Green note they initiated and organized the vigil with the support of Professors for a Strong Israel, which is headed by former MK Prof. Aryeh Eldad, and Mattot Arim. The group stresses that "the application of sovereignty is the right plan because this Land belongs to us."

"The Left tries to alarm and frighten the people of Israel with the prospect of isolation, economic sanctions, and boycotts, and constantly attempts to impose the 'Two-State' plan upon us," notes the group. "The people have had enough of the Left's lies - as if the establishment of a Palestinian state a stone-throw away from Ben Gurion Airport would bring about peace."

"We, mothers of families in Israel, have decided to abandon the daily routines of our lives, to leave our homes in order to sit outside the Prime Minister's
house and tell him: Fear not and do not falter," continues the ad.

The group notes the reasons for holding a vigil include the fact that a peace deal is not yet signed and can be blocked, that we "must not depend on miracles" in hoping "there will be no agreement because the Arabs will not agree," and that we must take responsibility for future generations.

All those interested in the effort are invited to join the vigil for as long as possible.

At a Women in Green-initiated Forum for Application of Sovereignty earlier this month, it was announced that a new academic research institute will be founded to explore the issue of declaring Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria.

The "Mothers" campaign echoes past campaigns by the left wing, which used the theme of motherhood to sway public opinion for its causes. The most famous of these was the "Four Mothers" campaign that began in 1997, which successfully lobbied for the IDF's retreat from the Security Belt in Lebanon -- a retreat that was indeed executed in a hurried fashion by then-Prime Minister Ehud Barak in 2000. That retreat made it possible for Hezbollah to take over southern Lebanon and fill it with tens of thousands of missiles that cover all of Israel's territory. Experts are also in wide agreement that it was perceived as a sign of Israeli weakness by then-head of the PA, Yasser Arafat, and convinced him to launch the atrocious terror war known as the 'Second Intifada' a few months later.

Four Mothers" enjoyed the support of the Israeli media, which turned the initially tiny group into a major political force. Labor MK Shelly Yechimovich, who was a leading broadcaster in Voice of Israel public radio at the time, is credited with leading this media campaign and takes pride in it. Unlike the Four Mothers, however, Women in Green are likely to be studiously ignored by most of Israel's press.