Religious Zionism leader Bezalel Smotrich responded to Defense Minister Gantz's announcement that Evyatar was still slated for destruction, saying "In the face of thousands of illegal Arab buildings around Evyatar, in the face of Khan al-Ahmar still standing, in the face of this left-wing government's intention to whitewash tens of thousands of illegal Bedouin structures in the Negev, in the face of the Arab violence and insurrection around Evyatar, it is Evyatar itself that will be destroyed. It is hypocrisy and a Jewish, Zionist, moral and legal injustice."