מאות מתבצרים בבית התקומה בחברוןבשי דרשן/TPS

Hundreds of young activists and supporters of the Jewish community in Hebron barricaded themselves in a contested building Sunday afternoon, amid fears the army may try to evict residents.

The fifteen families who recently moved into the building called on the public to join them in Hebron to protest the possible eviction.

The building, called ‘Beit HaTekumah’ by members of the local Jewish community, is home to fifteen Israeli families, who moved in late last week.

The Jewish municipality of Hebron, which was separated from the Arab municipality in 2019, says the building was purchased by Jewish residents from Arabs, though an Arab resident of Jerusalem contests this, claiming to be the rightful owner of the property.

The building, which lies near the edge of the Israeli town of Kiryat Arba on the outskirts of Hebron, is in close proximity to Beit HaShalom, another building purchased by Jewish residents.

In a statement released Sunday, the fifteen families living in Beit HaTekumah blasted Defense Minister Benny Gantz over his plans to evict residents.

“This evacuation is being planned primarily over political concerns for this narrow coalition government, with elections in the offing and a need to sacrifice the settler public, a large portion of whom voted for the right-wing government in the coalition, in order to keep the Muslim Brotherhood in the government at any cost.”