Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu paid tribute to Moshe Zar, a pioneer of Jewish presence in Samaria, who passed away at the age of 88. “He wasn’t just a businessman - he had a vision and he turned dreams into reality,” Eliyahu wrote.

Eliyahu praised Zar’s role in establishing communities such as Barkan, Emmanuel, and Karnei Shomron, as well as his efforts to acquire land “with honest money and with his own hands.”

He also highlighted the founding of Havat Gilad, established in memory of his son Gilad, who was murdered in a terrorist attack. “A man who saw a desert and turned it into a paradise... may we be worthy of the legacy he left us,” Eliyahu concluded.