In a move that stirred controversy among MKs of all parties, newly elected Labor Party chairman
Amir Peretz submitted a Knesset bill Monday that would grant compensation to West Bank settlements where 60% of the residents left voluntarily.
In a statement accompanying the bill Peretz wrote that he intended to create "incentives for the continuation of voluntary evacuation of the Israeli citizens located in Judea and Samaria.â€
"[The disengagement] was a concrete example of the nation's ability to establish a compensation framework appropriate to those residents who were evacuated from their homes," wrote Peretz.
The bill was co-sponsored by Labor MKs
Yuli Tamir and Ilana Cohen, who have often been criticized along with Peretz for dovish policies.
“This is a political step, he is trying to reach out for votes he think he can get,†said a Shas MK who asked not to be named. “This bill won’t ever reach the state where we vote on it. MK Uri Ariel (
National Union) also responded calling the bill “a shame."