The IDF and Israeli police forces are also making final arrangements for the evacuation of the two isolated communities in northern Samaria. Expulsion forces are bracing for an intense struggle in the two small towns.
While hoping for a generally peaceful resistance, IDF Central District Commander Major-General Yair Naveh said earlier Monday, “I can’t say there are no weapons in those communities.”
IDF Judea & Samaria Division Commander Major-General Yair Golan remains confident that “the implementation of the disengagement plan in northern Samaria will be less difficult than previously predicted.”
MK Aryeh Eldad (National Union), a strong opponent of the disengagement, rejects the idea that resisters will use weapons and does not believe that resistance will turn violent. He suggested that the opposition will be strong, but will remain passive, stating, “no one will lift a hand against soldiers.”
In the town of Homesh, over 1,000 land of Israel activists have been mobilizing over the past few days. The town’s resistance is well organized, and activists have been split into several formations, with each individual receiving various responsibilities. Additionally, everyone inside will take specific positions as evacuation forces enter.
Throughout the day, teenagers and young adults were readying houses and town structures as fortresses. While most of the buildings in the town are topped with classic Israeli red roofs, a few flat-roofed buildings are being prepared as ramparts, surrounded by razor-edged barbed wire.
Other groups of youngsters were similarly surrounding the town’s perimeter with razor wire, which they hope will slow down invading IDF and police forces.
“We are not going to make this evacuation easy for the police,” said Tzipi, an activist taking part in the resistance in Homesh. “We will do whatever we can to make it difficult.
“We will prevent them from succeeding in their mission however we can. But, we do not want to physically harm anyone. It is not our goal to hurt soldiers or police,” she added.
Most young children have left Homesh, while the average age of the 1,000 plus resisters is under 18.
Although Homesh activists will not use violence, they are not opposed to physical contact. If police try to remove resisters by force, many will fight to get away.
Unlike the struggle for Gush Katif, led primarily by the Yesha council, several rabbis are leading the struggle for northern Samaria. Rabbis are urging those in Homesh to use their physical bodies to impede the disengagement.
“We know we are going to get beat up,” said Tzipi. “We must get beat up to show the world how much we care about the land of Israel.”
While most families have already left Homesh, about a dozen still remain. One resident, a Russian immigrant, was too distraught to help as others were busy packing his belongings into a container. “My entire life is now being forced into this truck.”
“The scenery here is absolutely breathtaking. There doesn’t seem to be any reason why Jews can’t live here in peace. There is no one else around,” said Tami, a resister who took part in the evacuation of Yamit over twenty years ago. “I thought I would never go through this again. And especially here, on such an important strategic location for the Jewish people.”
In the town of Sa-Nur preparations are also being made for the arrival of evacuation forces. Enough food for a number of days has been stockpiled into the community’s central building. The building was recently used as an art gallery, featuring the work of the artists living in the Sa-Nur artist’s colony.
The ediface was built during the period of Turkish control in Israel, and used a police station. Now the building is being readied as a fortress for the many activists that have come to protest disengagement.
Unlike Homesh however, no barbed wire or other similar materials were spotted around the community today. And resisters are both young and old alike, with many young children remaining in Sa-Nur.
With less than 24 hours remaining to the impending evacuation, over fifty children were playing on large blow-up toys and a waterslide brought into the town by a private company.
Teenagers and young adults were milling around the small town with smiles on their faces, and were not organized with distinct roles as their counterparts in Homesh.
“The collective leadership of this town may take a decision not to resist forces when they arrive. We’ll have to see what happens,” said one activist leader.
Army and police forces on the other hand, were making several preparations just outside the town, and have taken over a gas station as a headquarters about 300 meters from the Sa-Nur's main entrance. Adjacent to the station, a large field has been cleared of brush to be used by forces on the day of the evacuation.
Numerous checkpoints have been established on the roads leading up to Homesh and Sa-Nur to prevent any additional resisters from entering. Several arrests have been made, as individuals and groups have tried to infiltrate the communities.
While hoping for a generally peaceful resistance, IDF Central District Commander Major-General Yair Naveh said earlier Monday, “I can’t say there are no weapons in those communities.”
IDF Judea & Samaria Division Commander Major-General Yair Golan remains confident that “the implementation of the disengagement plan in northern Samaria will be less difficult than previously predicted.”
MK Aryeh Eldad (National Union), a strong opponent of the disengagement, rejects the idea that resisters will use weapons and does not believe that resistance will turn violent. He suggested that the opposition will be strong, but will remain passive, stating, “no one will lift a hand against soldiers.”
In the town of Homesh, over 1,000 land of Israel activists have been mobilizing over the past few days. The town’s resistance is well organized, and activists have been split into several formations, with each individual receiving various responsibilities. Additionally, everyone inside will take specific positions as evacuation forces enter.
Throughout the day, teenagers and young adults were readying houses and town structures as fortresses. While most of the buildings in the town are topped with classic Israeli red roofs, a few flat-roofed buildings are being prepared as ramparts, surrounded by razor-edged barbed wire.
Other groups of youngsters were similarly surrounding the town’s perimeter with razor wire, which they hope will slow down invading IDF and police forces.
“We are not going to make this evacuation easy for the police,” said Tzipi, an activist taking part in the resistance in Homesh. “We will do whatever we can to make it difficult.
“We will prevent them from succeeding in their mission however we can. But, we do not want to physically harm anyone. It is not our goal to hurt soldiers or police,” she added.
Most young children have left Homesh, while the average age of the 1,000 plus resisters is under 18.
Although Homesh activists will not use violence, they are not opposed to physical contact. If police try to remove resisters by force, many will fight to get away.
Unlike the struggle for Gush Katif, led primarily by the Yesha council, several rabbis are leading the struggle for northern Samaria. Rabbis are urging those in Homesh to use their physical bodies to impede the disengagement.
“We know we are going to get beat up,” said Tzipi. “We must get beat up to show the world how much we care about the land of Israel.”
While most families have already left Homesh, about a dozen still remain. One resident, a Russian immigrant, was too distraught to help as others were busy packing his belongings into a container. “My entire life is now being forced into this truck.”
“The scenery here is absolutely breathtaking. There doesn’t seem to be any reason why Jews can’t live here in peace. There is no one else around,” said Tami, a resister who took part in the evacuation of Yamit over twenty years ago. “I thought I would never go through this again. And especially here, on such an important strategic location for the Jewish people.”
In the town of Sa-Nur preparations are also being made for the arrival of evacuation forces. Enough food for a number of days has been stockpiled into the community’s central building. The building was recently used as an art gallery, featuring the work of the artists living in the Sa-Nur artist’s colony.
The ediface was built during the period of Turkish control in Israel, and used a police station. Now the building is being readied as a fortress for the many activists that have come to protest disengagement.
Unlike Homesh however, no barbed wire or other similar materials were spotted around the community today. And resisters are both young and old alike, with many young children remaining in Sa-Nur.
With less than 24 hours remaining to the impending evacuation, over fifty children were playing on large blow-up toys and a waterslide brought into the town by a private company.
Teenagers and young adults were milling around the small town with smiles on their faces, and were not organized with distinct roles as their counterparts in Homesh.
“The collective leadership of this town may take a decision not to resist forces when they arrive. We’ll have to see what happens,” said one activist leader.
Army and police forces on the other hand, were making several preparations just outside the town, and have taken over a gas station as a headquarters about 300 meters from the Sa-Nur's main entrance. Adjacent to the station, a large field has been cleared of brush to be used by forces on the day of the evacuation.
Numerous checkpoints have been established on the roads leading up to Homesh and Sa-Nur to prevent any additional resisters from entering. Several arrests have been made, as individuals and groups have tried to infiltrate the communities.