Hundreds of Border Police and Yassam officers, accompanied by inspectors from the Civil Administration, raided the Beit Anot hilltop community in the Hebron hills, near Kiryat Arba, demolishing the homes of three families as well as the outpost's synagogue.
The evacuation began at approximately 2:30 a.m. Hundreds of officers descended on the hilltop from several directions, surrounded the residents' homes, and informed the families they had only minutes to evacuate. Children were taken from their beds wrapped in blankets, while Arab workers brought by the Civil Administration tossed the furniture, clothing, and other belongings from the homes.
During the operation, the forces also confiscated two residents' vehicles and an additional trailer. Three residents were arrested.
"We woke up in the middle of the night to a crazy and surreal event," Yaron Klav, a resident who was evacuated from his home along with his wife and eight children, said Thursday morning.
"Hundreds of police officers surrounded our house in a complex operation as if we were leaders of a crime organization. They gave us 10 minutes to get the children out, and then Arab workers simply started throwing all of our furniture and personal belongings outside - the baby's crib, the beds, the clothes, the kitchen utensils, everything. The children were in shock."
According to Klav, "Before we came here to Beit Anot, the entire ridge was under massive illegal Arab takeover, with widespread illegal water theft and poaching of the surrounding villages. The security establishment slept through it for years and suddenly remembered to wake up only after Jews decided to put an end to the situation. It's an indescribable absurdity."
"Rebuilding everything from scratch and rising from the rubble with eight children is certainly not easy, and we know that well," he added. "But at the same time, we know with certainty that we will do exactly that. The homes will be rebuilt, the hilltop will be restored, and a permanent community will one day stand on this mountain, where Jewish boys and girls - including those who were forced from their homes tonight - will play in its streets."