Nationalist activists send shockwaves throughout Judea and Samaria

Nationalist activists send shockwaves throughout Judea and Samaria  


 Zahava Englard  


Promoting a plan that includes citizenship for Arabs in Judea and Samaria.


A couple of days ago I sat with Yehudit Katsover and Nadia Matar somewhere in Gush Etzion discussing a new and provocative right wing initiative while drinking ice water to ward off the afternoon heat. Nadia and Yehudit are both passionate and devoted veteran Land of Israel activists in the nationalist camp, and when they began to speak to me about a proposal that includes offering the Arab residents of Judea and Samaria Israeli citizenship I was naturally intrigued.


Over the years, Nadia Matar and Yehudit Katsover have tirelessly struggled to block illegal Arab take-over of Jewish and state owned land. For the past seven years they have worked together as co-chairs of Women for Israel’s Tomorrow (Women in Green). These acts of Arab encroachment are purportedly instigated by the EU, and European funded anarchist organizations such as The Solidarity Movement, and NGO’s such as JAI, US Aid, Oxfam, as well as Peace Now and the New Israel Fund.


“There’s always another fire to put out,” said Nadia. “Each time leftists attempted to close an area to Jews, (Bet El Ulpana, Migron, Givat Assaf, Beit HaShalom, etc.) the local Jews had to move fast to put each fire out.” She and Yehudit despair that practically daily another hill is taken over by agricultural jihad and by illegal Arab construction.


Nadia and Yehudit decided that the time has come to get to the root of the problem. “Albeit 45 years late, it’s time for the government of Israel to pursue an initiative that would extend its sovereignty over Judea and Samaria, which would include granting the Arab residents in the area Israeli citizenship.” More and more people are realizing that the two-state solution is not a viable alternative.


They regularly quote from Bereishit 12:7, I will give this land to your offspring; from Bereishit 17:8, And I give to you and your offspring after you the land you sojourn in…as an everlasting possession; and from Devarim 7:1-2; When the Lord…casts out many nations before you…make no covenant with them and give them no foothold..


While giving credit to these biblical references may not fit the modern thought process of the left, it is nevertheless the core of a conviction that is steeped in the root of Judaism, the religion of our nation. It is not something that can be easily dismissed. For it is, after all, the reason we are here, the reason for our claim to the land and the very reason for our yearning for this land since the destruction of the second temple.


Our history begins in our heartland. And the heartland of Israel is Judea and Samaria. Nadia refers to Tel-Aviv as a “tinoket,” a baby next to Judea and Samaria. The heartland is the spine of our country, which protects the coastal plain.
“Because we believe in our sovereignty over Judea and Samaria, we are willing to pay the price and give the Arabs in the region citizenship,” explains Yehudit. “For our land we are ready to suffer and sacrifice. We will pay the price.”


Being a full-fledged nationalist right-winger myself, I support Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria but I wasn’t entirely sold on the proposal of Israeli citizenship for Arab residents there and the terrorists that lie within. I poured myself another glass of water though wishing it was something stronger at this point and continued to listen.


They informed me that this initiative will be thoroughly explored at the upcoming Sovereignty Conference, Thursday, July 12th at the Machpela Visitor’s Center in Hevron.


It is their contention that the government consistently considers options of throwing out Jews from their homes (an option that was indeed carried out in 2005 in Gush Katif and northern Shomron). With the disastrous consequences since then felt daily in southern Israel, the time has come to swerve public discourse away from capitulation and regain the initiative.


To be sure, the entire right wing camp is not convinced that becoming proponents of a plan that includes Arab citizenship in Judea and Samaria is the wisest path, even if it is instituted in stages.


This would necessitate having the Arabs sign an oath of loyalty to the State of Israel and its laws along with a commitment to fulfill their national service. Not an unreasonable idea, according to Nadia, since “It took a relative of mine 10 years before she was able to receive American citizenship.” However, according to Nadia and Yehudit, although there are risks, they are reasonable risks that can lead to peace. “The Jewish people should never abandon their land; they prefer to give citizenship to the Arabs.” They and other like-minded advocates consider this move as a medication to make Israel healthier, and sometimes, there are side effects.


Even so, they did not appear worried over the much-touted demographic problem. They cite Yoram Ettinger, formerly the Minister for Congressional Affairs to Israel’s Embassy in Washington, DC, and former Consul General of Israel to the Southwestern US. who is a recognized expert on Jewish-Arab demography. He maintains that the demographic problem is not as great as it has been portrayed. http://www.theettingerreport.com/Demographic-Scare.aspx


For one thing, the left has added one million to the Arab population in Judea and Samaria, their dead are still counted into the total as well as those who have emigrated. At present, the Jewish birthrate exceeds the Arab birthrate in the region. With the increase of higher education for Arab women came a decrease in their birthrate. Should the Israeli government treat aliya as a top national priority, Yoram Ettinger predicts that by 2035 there will be an 80% Jewish majority.


According to Nadia and Yehudit, it is the creation of a Palestinian State that would unsettle the Jewish demographics. As long as Israel has sovereignty over Judea and Samaria it controls the border with Jordan, preventing an influx of Jordanian Arabs into the area.


Having spoken to large groups of secular Jews in Israel, they found considerable numbers receptive to their initiative. It is further understood from Arabs themselves that many prefer Israeli citizenship to the Palestinian Authority but are afraid to declare this aloud.


As to how the world will react to Israeli Sovereignty over Judea and Samaria, “The heaven did not fall when Israel applied sovereignty over Jerusalem and the Golan Heights, nor will it fall when we apply sovereignty over Judea and Samaria,” say Nadia and Yehudit. “Should the world scream over it, let them. Better than to have them love us for capitulating as we are driven out of our land.”


Many notables over the past year have been pushing for this initiative. Notables such as MK Tzipi Hotovely, Caroline Glick, Yoram Ettinger, Attorney Howard Grief and MK Uri Ariel to name a few, who likewise plan to be present at the upcoming Sovereignty Conference.


I marked off July 12th on my calendar. While I found merit in what was explained to me, I was still not completely convinced. I’ve decided to remain undecided until I explore this initiative further and weigh all the pros and cons. As I understand it, bus transportation to this event will be available from a variety of locations. Lectures will be in Hebrew with simultaneous English translation. Perhaps you’d like to join me?


For further details on the Conference, I’m happy to provide the following link which has the information in Hebrew followed by English.


http://www.womeningreen.org/2ndConvention.php

http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/nationalist-activists-send-shockwaves-throughout-judea-samaria/#.T_CR5Gf7kWN.facebook