Israeli forces on Friday evicted dozens of Jewish settlers in the West Bank city of Hebron, a day after the settlers moved into two buildings in the heart of the flashpoint city, near the Tomb of the Patriarchs, which is a Jewish and Muslim holy site.
According to Israel Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld, the troops removed 80 people who had moved into the buildings and closed access to the sites.
Several Israeli ministers and Knesset members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party decried Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon's refusal to sign off on the settlers' occupation of the homes. The settlers said they had bought the properties legally from Palestinian owners but in order to occupy the apartments they need Defense Ministry's approval. Yaalon said the settlers had not complied with the law.
"I have no intention of compromising when the law is broken so egregiously," he declared. "To take occupancy of the homes, a number of actions are required and none were carried out, which is why the trespassers were evicted."
Three lawmakers, two from Likud and another from the Jewish Home party, said they would not attend parliamentary votes on Monday in protest at the move.
"It is forbidden to evict Jews from their homes and there will be consequences, we demand the prime minister's involvement in the matter," said Ayoub Kara, a Druze Likud lawmaker.
Tourism Minister Yariv Levin said Ya'alon's move was "scandalous", while Diaspora Affairs Minister Zeev Elkin described it as "wrong".
About 1,000 Israeli settlers in Hebron live in heavily-guarded enclaves, surrounded by tens of thousands of Palestinians.
