Homesh

Homesh
חֹמֶשׁ‎
حومش
Etymology: Named after 5 villages that were in the area during the time of the Mishnah and the Talmud.[citation needed]
Homesh is located in the Northern West Bank
Homesh
Homesh
Coordinates: 32°18′29″N 35°11′33″E / 32.30806°N 35.19250°E / 32.30806; 35.19250
DistrictJudea and Samaria Area
CouncilShomron
RegionWest Bank
AffiliationMishkei Herut Beitar
Founded1978
Population
 (2005)
70 families

Homesh (Hebrew: חֹמֶשׁ, חומש) was an Israeli settlement in the West Bank along Route 60, just south of the Palestinian towns of Silat ad-Dhahr and Fandaqumiya, illegally built over private Palestinian land.[1] The settlement was under the administrative jurisdiction of the Shomron Regional Council. In 2005, the settlement homes were demolished along with three other settlements in the northern West Bank, at the same time as the Israeli disengagement from Gaza.[2]

The international community considers all Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, whereas the Homesh outpost, built over private Palestinian land, is illegal also under Israeli law.[3]

In 2023, the new Israeli government under Benjamin Netanyahu announced it intended to legalize the Israeli outpost illegally established at the site of the previous Homesh settlement. In reaction, Israel's Supreme Court issued an injunction against the Israeli government, urging it to dismantle the outpost, illegal under Israeli law, and to grant the Palestinian landowners of the area regular access to their land, something they have been systematically denied for years, due to the presence of the outpost and restrictions imposed by the IDF.[4]

Subsequently, with Israeli government approval, Israeli settlers relocated a yeshiva established on private Palestinian land to a nearby spot designated state-owned land. The relocation was carried out despite international opposition, including repeatedly from the U.S., and the opposition of the Israeli attorney general.[5][6][7][8]

  1. ^ "Border Police evacuate huts on West Bank Homesh hilltop". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  2. ^ https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2987468&CMP=OTC-RSSFeeds0312 [dead link]
  3. ^ Sharon, Jeremy. "High Court demands government explain refusal to demolish Homesh outpost". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  4. ^ Magid, Jacob. "'Illegal even under Israeli law': US urges Israel not to legalize settler outpost". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  5. ^ Kubovich, Yaniv; Samuels, Ben (29 May 2023). "Despite International Uproar | Yeshiva in West Bank Outpost of Homesh Relocated Illegally Overnight, With Gov't Approval". Haaretz. Retrieved 29 May 2023.
  6. ^ Goldenberg, Tia (29 May 2023). "Jewish settlers erect religious school in evacuated West Bank outpost after Israel repeals ban". AP NEWS. Retrieved 29 May 2023.
  7. ^ "Eighty Israeli Soldiers for 30 Settlers: Inside Homesh's Revival" – via Haaretz.
  8. ^ "UK, EU Join U.S. in Strong Criticism of Israel's Relocation of West Bank Outpost of Homesh" – via Haaretz.