Like Then: The Battle for Israel’s Independence
A tenacious battle is being waged over the state lands in Netzer in Gush Etzion.
The Arabs understand the value of land, the value of the soil, land is ownership. As part of that battle, dozens of activists came to Netzer yesterday, Lag be-Omer, to actualize ownership of the state lands.
Dozens of olive trees were planted by the activists, in the part adjoining Derekh ha-Avot in Elazar.
Rabbi Gideon Perl, the regional rabbi of Gush Etzion, honored the event by his presence and his blessings. He also planted trees (see the attached photograph). Those present extended their wishes to the rabbi that he would be the rabbi of the neighborhood that, with God’s help, will be built in Netzer.
Steve Rodan from Elazar, who, together with his family, has been struggling here for five years, said that we are close to the time of the Messiah. The atmosphere was both uplifting and tense. Civil Administration jeeps were close by. At the end of the plantings the jeeps remained in the area, as did several activists, to prevent the uprooting of the trees, Heaven forbid.
Elazar residents who saw the Civil Administration and the police came to the site to provide reinforcements and support. In the end, the Civil Administration people left at nightfall, and then the activists could breath a sigh of relief.
We were pleasantly surprised when David Sayyed – who conquers the land of Eretz Israel by foot with the well-known tours that he organizes beyond the fences, the walls, and boundary markings, brought his son, who is named “Netzer,” to take part in the plantings. The entire family planted a tree, and thereby conquered an additional holding in Eretz Israel. The infant Netzer looked happy – even though it wasn’t clear whether he understood what his parents were doing.
In a telephone conversation with the activists, Geulah Cohen asked: “Planting on Lag be-Omer? What’s this – Tu bi-Shevat?”
The answer that she received: “Most of the Jewish holidays are connected with Eretz Israel, and certainly Lag be-Omer, too. Bar Kokhba fought for the independence of Israel – political and spiritual independence, and the same is true today. The superpowers and foreign countries want to take away our independence, and this is the precise reason for the plantings: to establish facts on the ground in the areas of Eretz Israel, to leave the Pale of Settlement, to breach our seclusion behind fences and walls, to live in the expanses, and to preserve the possibilities of development by the settlements.”
for the photographs by Rivka Ryback, click on: http://www.yeshabulletin.com/FIGHT%20BACK/FightBack.htm
Photographs taken by Women in Green are attached.
Judea Action Committees – Women in Green – Garin Netzer – Yibaneh Fund
for etails: Nadia matar 0505500834 Yehudit Katsover 0507161818
