Mazal Tov: New Jewish Settlement in Samaria — Evyatar
“Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for unto thee will I give it.'” Genesis 13:17 (The Israel Bible™)
A group of some 50 Jewish families on Monday launched a new community in Israel, near the Tapuach junction in Samaria. The new community was named Evyatar, in memory of Evyatar Borowski HY”D, a gifted artist who was stabbed to death by an Arab near Tapuach junction in 2013. The settlement is intended as a call to the Netanyahu government to go back to starting new Jewish villages and towns in Judea and Samaria.
The Army approved the overnight stay of the settlers of Evyatar, who agreed to be evacuated the next day, with a commitment to come back in the near future.
Immediately following the murder, then Samaria Council Head Gershon Mesika moved his office to the site, only to be removed by order of the Defense Minister. The site continued to be visited by Israelis who cherished the memory of Borowski, who was in his early 30s when he was murdered, leaving a wife and five children.
Shmuel Gazit, member of the new settlement, told Srugim the government has been enforcing a harsh policy of settlement freezing which threatens the future of Jewish life in the region. The new settlement will serve as a battering ram against this policy and help break through the blockade imposed on Judea and Samaria.
The year 2016 marks the 40th anniversary of Jewish settlements in Samaria. The ceremony at Evyatar Monday night included Yossi Dagan, the new head of the Council, Chief Rabbi of Samaria Rav Elyakim Levanon, and Rabbi David Dudkevitz.
“We call on the lovers of Israel to come and support our settlement,” Gazit said, adding, “We aspire to reach the stage where thousands of men, women and children will tell the Israeli government, We’ll stay here until you approve erecting a new settlement. Such a national reawakening will have the power to break through the existing blockade around Judea and Samaria, leading to a new wave of settlements across the region.”
