Court orders Jewish homes be demolished

THE ISRAELI high court has ruled that five homes in the West Bank settlement of Beit El, north of Jerusalem, must be demolished by July 1st, in a move likely to be the focal point in the Israeli election campaign.

The decision came as members of the Knesset began voting to dissolve the parliament ahead of early elections on September 4th.

The ruling Likud party champions the cause of West Bank settlers and the prospect of evicting Jews from their homes and sending in bulldozers to implement the court ruling in the middle of an election campaign represents a nightmare for prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu. Militant settlers have resisted previous demolitions, resulting in clashes with the security forces.

The buildings in question, home to 30 settler families, were built in the Ulpana neighbourhood of the Beit El settlement.

According to an earlier court ruling, the homes were built on private Palestinian land and were scheduled to be destroyed by May 1st. Settlers and the right, including Likud officials, mounted a campaign against the move.

The high court heard a last-minute petition from the state proposing a three-month postponement on the grounds that the government was reconsidering its policy in such cases. Yesterday, the court ruled against the state, stressing the obligation of the executive branch to implement judicial rulings. “The authority to reopen a completed legal procedure is reserved for unusual situations and extraordinary circumstances,” the judges ruled. Settler leaders warned the destruction of the neighbourhood would result in the Likud losing the election.