Police evacuate settlers from Homesh

Two girls arrested; otherwise, forces meet little resistance during operation.

By YAAKOV KATZ
Homesh 298.88 (photo credit: AP [file])
Homesh 298.88
(photo credit: AP [file])
Close to 1,000 policemen fitted with riot gear evacuated the remaining several hundred right-wing activists from Homesh on Wednesday, ending a three-day showdown between the government and settlers who were trying to reestablish the settlement. The evacuation passed with barely any violence or resistance by the activists and two female protesters were detained for questioning. Yossi Dagan, one of the organizers, emphasized that the activists had no intention of starting violent confrontations with police, but that they had come to resettle the town. Some 2,500 protesters marched to Homesh on Monday, pledging to rebuild it.
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  • Analysis: Old foes, new rules Demonstrators set up large canvas tents and started piling up rocks, in a symbolic attempt at reconstruction. About 500 were still there when the police swept into the former settlement early Wednesday morning. The troops began dragging some protesters away, with four officers carrying each demonstrator - one holding each limb - and placing them on waiting buses, a scene reminiscent of the original 2005 disengagement, under which Homesh was originally evacuated. AP contributed to the report.