(Jerusalem Post) Josh Hasten - The town of Susiya, a small, ancient and historical Jewish community in the Southern Hebron Hills in the West Bank, has recently been making its way to the top of the news cycle as attention is being given to "Arab Susiya," an illegal encampment built on state land adjacent to a 1,500-year-old Jewish historical site. To put it bluntly, "Arab Susiya" is a complete fabrication. Surveys by the British Mandatory powers in 1945, which mention all of the villages in the area, prove there is no hint of the existence of an Arab village named Susiya. Aerial photos as recently as 1999 show nothing resembling a village in that area. This is simply a media stunt by anti-Israel NGOs. The squatters are mainly from the Nawajah family who reside in the nearby town of Yatta. If they are removed, they will not be left homeless. They can simply go home to Yatta or to an alternate area offered by Israel on state land adjacent to Yatta. It is highly doubtful that the legal system of the U.S., Europe or any other country would conduct itself with such a high level of tolerance and patience in a similar case as has Israel's. The writer is the international director of Regavim.
2016-08-19 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive