Avi Dichter
Avi DichterYonatan Sindel/Flash 90

MK Avi Dichter (Likud) says that the problem with Amona's legality is the state's responsibility and not that of the residents. He adds that the solution to the problem must set a new legal precedent for such issues.

"The State of Israel is responsible for finding a solution for Amona residents just as it is responsible for residents of any other community. This responsibility is not something which is up for discussion. The community is legal, it was erected with the support of the state," said Dichter in an Arutz Sheva interview.

He says that "Any solution which will be proposed must be legal, whether within the present framework of the law or requiring new legislation by the Knesset which could be upheld in the High Court. We owe this solution to ourselves and not just to the residents of Amona."

Dichter says that the solution must be an overall one and not just relate to Amona. "This is not just Amona's problem. There are many houses which have been legally constructed on land which later is discovered to be in dispute. We shouldn't come with complaints to the residents but rather to ourselves as a state. This problem is not endemic to Judea and Samaria - it exists in other areas of the country - and the state of Israel is obligated to provide an innovative solution.

"The regulation law (which allows for monetary compensation if claimants prove ownership of land where houses were built because the claimant's ownership was unknown, ed.) could be the conduit in which we can direct the process (of legislating these properties) since one should not just look at the houses of Amona, one should see them as a precedent for future cases."

Dichter added that the postponement requested by the state was designed to allow a creative solution which will enable Amona residents to live in these or other houses and will enable the state to provide them with the best possible conditions.