On a visit to the community of Susya south of Hevron this morning, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman addressed the planned destruction of the Jewish community of Amona later this year by order of the Supreme Court.
"There is a decision of the Supreme Court, and we are going to honor it. I told the residents of Amona, if somebody thinks that we're not going to honor the order, he is deluding himself."
Emphasizing respect for the rule of law, Liberman continued, "We are a country of law, and we will respect our law, whether here or in Amona. We will respect our state and its symbols, and the law as it exists in the State of Israel."
Although Amona was built on land purchased from Palestinian Authority residents, the Supreme Court has nevertheless ordered that the town be destroyed, after the Civil Administration claimed that the deeds provided by the founders of the community are invalid.
In 2006 nine homes in Amona were demolished, following a ruling by the Supreme Court which held that the structures had been built on privately-owned Arab land. The evacuation resulted in the injury of hundreds of civilians and instances of police brutality that were filmed in the course of the evacuation.
Film by Tzvi Fishman, Yaacov Novik, and Avraham Sheinman