Khan al-Ahmar
Khan al-AhmarHillel Meir/TPS

In light of the decision to postpone the evacuation of the Bedouin village of Khan al-Ahmar, Education Minister and member of the Security Cabinet, Naftali Bennett, this morning commented:

"Khan al-Ahmar will be evacuated. This is an illegal construction whose destruction was approved by the Supreme Court."

“In a state which abides by the rule of law, the law is enforced even if there is opposition or threats from the international community.

“The Jewish Home Party will make sure that it does happen."

Yesterday, Prime Minister Netanyahu ordered the scheduled demolition of the illegal Khan al-Ahmar outpost postponed following pressure from the International Criminal Court at The Hague.

Israel is delaying the evacuation of Khan al-Ahmar "at this point" officials close to the prime minister said. "We want to exhaust all the options."

Netanyahu's decision to postpone Khan al-Ahmar's evacuation is in direct opposition to a Supreme Court ruling mandating that the town be evacuated by October 1. While the deadline has already passed, police and the IDF have been preparing to destroy the outpost imminently.

Last week, International Criminal Court Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said that Israel can be prosecuted for war crimes if it goes ahead with the demolition. "Extensive destruction of property without military necessity and population transfers in an occupied territory constitute war crimes," she said.

Bensouda warned that "I will not hesitate to take any appropriate action within the framework of my authority according to the Rome Statute" enabling the ICC to prosecute world leaders.

Khan al-Ahmar was built in the 1990s on land belonging to the Israeli town of Kfar Adumim, east of Jerusalem. The encampment is home to some 170 Bedouin, who have expanded the community in recent years with the aid of foreign governments.