BICOM

The Israeli Supreme Court yesterday rejected the state’s request to postpone the relocation of the Migron outpost, until late 2015. The Supreme Court had earlier ruled that the illegally built houses must be demolished by the end of the month, because it was built on privately owned Palestinian land. The court, however, has extended the evacuation deadline until August.

Responding to 1 August deadline, the government vowed to uphold the verdict. “The government of Israel, like all citizens of Israel, respects the court’s decisions and acts according to Israeli law,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. “Sometimes even the obvious needs to be stated,” he said.  An Israeli official added that the only thing that had changed with respect to the Migron outpost evacuation after the court ruling was the timetable. The decision to relocate the 50 Migron families to state land 2 km away, which has drawn criticism both within Israel and internationally, remains the same.

Peace Now, who initially petitioned the court against the outpost in 2006, hailed Sunday’s ruling as a victory. “Today, the Supreme Court sent a clear statement to Migron settlers and the Israeli government: All groups and people are equal in the eyes of the law,” Peace Now executive director Yariv Oppenheimer said. “Now, the citizens of Israel await and hope that the Migron settlers will keep their promise and comply with the Supreme Court’s verdict by peacefully evacuating from the illegal outpost.”

Migron, north of Jerusalem, is home to 280 settlers.