Residents of the town of Amona on Sunday sent a letter to Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked (Jewish Home), in which they made clear that they are committed to the promise they made to the Supreme Court last month, and that they will be evacuated peacefully and without violence or resistance.
Following the letter, Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit, who earlier said he would not defend the Amona agreement at the Supreme Court due to the residents backing down from it, agreed to defend it.
The residents of Amona announced last week that they are no longer committed to the agreement they reached with the government and would renew the battle against their eviction. In their letter on Sunday, however, they made clear that they are committed to the agreement but demand that it be executed as soon as possible so they have somewhere to move by February 8, the date on which the Supreme Court ruled that Amona must be demolished.
In their letter to Shaked, the residents of Amona explained why last week they announced the cancellation of the agreement.
"We expressed disappointment with the state over the advancement of the Absentee Property outline, which will allow Amona to remain on the hill. Under the agreement, the state pledged to take immediate action to construct 52 buildings on Amona hill for the residents of Amona,” they wrote.
“The implementation of the outline was delayed, so we expressed disappointment and concern over the breach of the agreement,” explained the residents.
“Despite this disappointment, and despite the remarks made this week, it is clear that we are committed to our unconditional promise to the Supreme Court, dated December 22, 2016, that the evacuation of Amona will be peaceful and without any violence, conflict or resistance. Regardless of our commitment, we continue to expect that the state will continue to implement the outline as quickly as possible,” the letter said.