The state is planning to ask the Supreme Court to approve a one-month delay in the demolition of homes in Migron. A source told Arutz Sheva that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu requested the delay.
The town of Migron, north of Jerusalem, has faced threats of demolition since 2003. Its residents were sentenced to eviction in 2008, but the move has since been put on hold as a debate over the town's fate continues to unfold.
At stake now are three homes that officials say were built without authorization, homes that currently house families with children. The homes face demolition despite the fact that the original complaint against the structures, filed by the left-wing NGO Yesh Din, has since been withdrawn.
Bulldozers and activists appeared to be heading for a clash earlier Sunday. Netanyahu's last-minute appeal appears designed to avoid violent conflict over the fate of the homes.
“Netanyahu and some of the ministers decided to act responsibly and democratically, without home demolitions,” a source close to the matter told Arutz Sheva.
Community leaders in the Migron region had offered a compromise that would involve the demolition of three other structures, which are not currently occupied by families.
Minister of the Interior Eli Yishai recently appealed to Netanyahu over the planned demolition of the homes. MK Tzipi Hotovely expressed concern over the planned demolition as well, and added, "We must not forget that, beyond the struggle over the houses of Migron, the big question is the belonging of Judea and Samaria to the Jewish people.”