Settlers threaten to hold hunger strike outside PM’s office

Settlers protesting the threat of forced evacuation from their homes are threatening to go on hunger strike, Army Radio reported on Wednesday.

Two residents from the West Bank outpost of Amona set up a tent outside the Prime Minister’s office in Jerusalem ahead of a crucial Knesset vote over the fate of controversial outposts facing demolition. The protest is supported by residents from the Ulpana neighborhood in Beit El, and the outposts of Migron, Givat Assaf, and Amona, all of which have been slated for destruction for having been built without proper permits.

The settlers are protesting the uncertain future of their homes. They may yet be granted a last-minute reprieve by a proposed law, set to be voted on by the Knesset next week, that aims to retroactively legalize the establishment of the outposts.

MK Yaakov Katz (National Unity), who initiated the law, said he would decide in the coming days whether to join the hunger strike himself.

However, potential hunger striker and Amona resident Yehuda Yifrah told Army Radio he would not be satisfied with mere displays of identification with his cause on the part of politicians.

“We want a real solution,” he said. “As far as we are concerned it is not enough to just show support, but also to vote for the law when it comes up.”

Rabbi Yoel Frank, community leader of Amona, told Army Radio that the settlement’s unhappy history — it was partly demolished in 2006 — spurred its residents to take action.

“My home was destroyed in a disgraceful manner,” he said. “Not only because the bricks were destroyed, but because our hearts were trampled upon, too.”