An Israel security forces unit is in the process of evacuating a Jewish-owned vineyard and farm said to have been built on private Palestinian land in the Samaria community of Shiloh which was built on top of the ruins of the biblical city of Shiloh.
Bezalel Smotrich, a minister in the Ministry of Defense whose coalition demand called for him to oversee defense activity in Judea and Samaria called the evacuation a "terrible injustice." Nevertheless, the Israeli forces, on orders from Defense Minister Yoav Gallant began evacuating the vineyard in the territory within the Binyamin Regional Council. The disagreement has reignited the battle for authority over Judea and Samaria within the Ministry of Defense and perhaps more significantly, exposed cracks in Netanyahu's coalition.
After an illegal outpost/winery (mostly) taken down in West Bank today both Smotrich and Ben Gvir making very public demands of Netanyahu: give us the authorities (over Civil Administration and West Bank Border Police) you promised us.
— Neri Zilber (@NeriZilber) February 15, 2023
Dozens of young people from high schools and yeshivas arrived Wednesday morning at the vineyard of the Ben Eliyahu family in Shiloh, in order to prevent the eviction of the vineyard which, according to the high court claims, is on Palestinian land.
One of the young men even climbed a cypress tree and began to secure himself to it. The entrenched man was interviewed live from the tree by a reporter from the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth and said: "I'm not ready to come down from the tree. I don't see Smotrich and Ben Gvir around, it's a shame. I'm not coming down." Knesset Member (MK) Limor Son Har-Malech from the Otzma Yehudit party arrived at the scene and was seen standing in front of a bulldozer. Five police officers then circled her and locked their arms to prevent her from interfering in a video that has made its way around social media.
@limor_sonhrmelh
— Yisrael Medad (@ymedad) February 15, 2023
MK Limor Sun-Melech has her movements restricted at Gush Shiloh today. https://t.co/xaVEQbDTxd
While the eviction order is executed, Minister Smotrich, sent a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in which he made harsh accusations against Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Smotrich wrote to Netanyahu that "about a month ago, as a minister in the Ministry of Defense who has been appointed as the coordinator of the government's operations in the territories and the Civil Administration, I instructed security forces to cancel the scandalously issued order against Chen Ben Eliyahu. To my astonishment, the Minister of Defense grossly violated the coalition agreement and reversed my decision."
Smotrich explained that he asked to stop the evacuation, but according to him, the matters are in the hands of Defense Minister Gallant. The claim is that the area is on Palestinian land, but the family petitioned the appeals committee, and their claim was accepted. However, once the case went to the Supreme Court that ruling was overturned and the court ruled that the vineyard must be vacated.
The move was carried out on the authority of Defense Minister Yoav Gallant despite orders from Smotrich.
— Jewish News Syndicate (@JNS_org) February 15, 2023
LEARN MORE 👇https://t.co/SanfLnFmzo
On the other side of the coalition, Minister Gallant's office said that "the Minister of Defense spoke with Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, and gave full backing to the IDF and the security forces. Any action in the field should be done according to the law, in full coordination, and subject to the assessment of the security situation." Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu backed Defense Minister Galant, and his office also noted that “the government supports settlement only when it is done legally and in coordination with the Prime Minister and the security forces, which was not done in this case."
