Israeli settlers evacuated from Maon near Hebron
Palestine-Israel, Politics, 11/10/1999

Hundreds of Israeli soldiers and policemen stormed the settlement stronghold of Maon in the West Bank and evacuated the approximately 300 Jewish settlers who had arrived to the site to support their fellow right-wing hard-liners. The evacuation decision was taken by prime minister Ehud Barak who cut short his visit to Paris and returned to Israel on Tuesday night to handle the Maon settlement question.

Barak was obviously adamant in his decision to evacuate the settlers since he had given them a number of time extensions hoping for their voluntary departure. On Tuesday night, Barak rejected an appeal by three of his Cabinet ministers who requested a ten-day period break to reach a compromise. The settlers and the army, however, continued to behave as if the compromise-seeking process had not even existed and fortified their positions in preparation for the inevitable showdown.

The showdown itself, however, was not as violent as some may have expected. Certainly it was in no way like any evacuation the Israeli army has had carried out in the past against Palestinians. There were no tear gas canisters, and the army did not fire a single bullet in the air. It was a five-star evacuation with each of the settlers evacuated out of the area being carried away by at least five Israeli soldiers and policemen.

Hundreds of soldiers and police were already concentrated in the Maon area near Hebron. The army patrolled and observed the outpost, showing readiness to act against a group of hard-line right wing activists who belong to a new nucleus movement calling itself "Generation of Continuity." There was concern among the military establishment that those group members could inflame passions and create provocation.

The evacuation was seen as the first test for Barak's government with regard to right-wing opposition in general and the settlement movement in particular. However, the real test that Barak will face is once he reaches a final status agreement with the Palestinians. Such an agreement will inevitably lead to evacuating entire settlements and not only outposts, a move that may be as smooth, or as non-violent as the Wednesday evacuation near Hebron.

Previous Stories:
  Barak returns early from Paris due to settlement problem   (11/9/1999)
  Palestinian source: Barak obstructs final status negotiations   (11/9/1999)
  Sheikh Yassin and Netanya explosion   (11/8/1999)

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