This protester, undoubtedly expelled from his home the following day, identified the most elemental issue in the uprooting of Gush Katif. Before this evolved into legal violence ("preparing for dictatorship," Uri Orbach termed it then). Before becoming the narrative of sectarian and religious division. Before the unprecedented political promise-breaking story in Israeli history, before everything else – this remained a straightforward question of whether disengagement would enhance Israel's position against terrorism, or deteriorate it. Gaza's battle was waged on security grounds, not religious or moral ones, and there the verdict was rendered.

One protester along the Ganei Tal-Katif route declared conditions would worsen, yet he stood essentially isolated. Complete security and political leadership rallied to proclaim improvement was coming. Before the Likud functionaries' referendum, Israel's Channel 2 hosted a compelling debate between opposing Benny Begin and supporting former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. "Fighting in Gaza requires no dozens of communities lacking any chance or future for survival. This applies equally to Nablus and everywhere," Olmert declared. Begin countered, "Gush Katif's synagogue could transform into a mosque, continuing incitement and terror operation planning against Israel." Olmert responded, "You guarantee functionaries eternal terror, we guarantee opportunities for change."

Then-Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz pronounced on referendum day, "I forecast terror levels will decline." Regarding the Qassams, then possessing merely five-kilometer range, Mofaz explained, "Through IDF preparations before, during and following disengagement, IDF flexibility against Gaza Strip threats will expand, including enhanced missile response capabilities should they emerge. Our plan targets Gaza's terror infrastructure, emphasizing leaders, operatives and Hamas capabilities."

Consider 'Mr. Security' himself, then-Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Before disengagement implementation, the Saturday night following Tisha B'Av, Sharon declared, "This plan serves Israel under any future circumstances. We minimize daily confrontations and casualties for both sides. The IDF will restructure along defensive boundaries, beyond the security barrier. Those persisting in fighting us will encounter the IDF and security apparatus at maximum capacity."

Weeks before the Simchat Torah massacre, the IDF's Southern Command commander during the disengagement, Dan Harel, clarified in an interview, "We knew Gaza would become Hamastan, but that's better... The border is clear, we built it very well... very stable, no infiltrations." Supporting his position, he characterized this as "a security initiative proven by time." His interviewer provided numerical justification regarding "In two years in Southern Command, 54 soldiers were killed, so the 18 years that have passed since would have cost 500 soldiers." Nearly 900 soldiers have perished since in Gaza conquest operations, yet he remains silent on apologies.

One faction envisioned post-Gush Katif futures featuring rockets, tunnels, missiles and incursions. The opposing faction portrayed post-Gush Katif scenarios emphasizing serenity, development and unrestricted international intervention in Gaza when convenient. The former proved absolutely accurate, the latter absolutely mistaken. The situation remains that elementary.

Contemporary magnificent gaslighting, featuring patronizing eye-rolling whenever "disengagement" surfaces as though representing ancient history, intends obscuring the fundamental reality that disengagement opponents correctly anticipated every consequence they warned against, while supporters erred in every encouragement they offered. Without the disengagement, Hamas would never have had two commando divisions to storm our border. Without the Oslo Accords, retrospectively speaking, Hamas lacked Gaza as a capital for manufacturing Qassams and raid teams that murdered Gush Katif inhabitants.

The deception centers on the "disengagement plan" terminology. The plain truth is Gaza never had anywhere to go. Before President Donald Trump's initiative, no genuine disengagement possibility existed from the terror sanctuary and demographic explosive. Sharon, strategically astute regarding settlers yet timid concerning Gazans, avoided launching Defensive Shield in Gaza fearing dozens of military casualties. Influenced by corrupt offspring and compromised media, he chose Rafiah Yam engagement over Rafah, producing known consequences.

It's trendy these days to pin messianic thinking on the right. Fair enough. But the truth is that two messianic movements crashed head-on in Gaza: the religious-nationalist right that wanted to annex the Gaza Strip and pretended two million Palestinians didn't exist because "it's our land," and the less talked-about secular-liberal left that believed pulling out would create a Gaza Riviera with high-tech and Singapore-style beach clubs.

The shrinking camp of disengagement supporters now makes two arguments. First, it could have worked differently. If we had just contained Hamas, fed them, and kept the Palestinian Authority out, there wouldn't have been terror. But remember – Hamas took over first through elections in 2006, then through an armed coup in 2007, both direct results of the disengagement. All these people now criticizing the Qatari money transfers? They were the same ones preaching "containment" and "accommodation" for years. If they really wanted to destroy Hamas, they had plenty of microphones to scream about Qatari cash. A fraction of the energy they put into fighting judicial reform would have stopped that disaster.

Second, they claim the Oct. 7 massacre would have happened anyway. That's incredibly brazen. It's like a guy who sells you "diet chocolate," forces you to eat it, then when you gain ten pounds says "Hey, you would have gotten fat on regular chocolate too." The whole point was to pay a steep price at home to get better security, not end up with the same nightmare. Unless better security was never really the goal, because no sane group with hundreds of years of military experience would think running away from terrorists would make them put down their guns. Maybe the real goal was always to crush internal opposition in Israeli society. You know: the operation failed, but at least the patient died.

The post It's that simple: Gaza disengagement opponents were right appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

The Education Ministry is planning to hold tours for schools and youth movements to the Homesh settlement, which has recently become permittable to visit for the first time in almost 20 years, Israel Hayom has learned. 

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If the plan comes to fruition, the tours will most likely require heavy security and perhaps even bulletproof buses, which will increase the costs involved. The financial aspect is only one of several expected to garner criticism, along with opposition from critics of the government's right-wing policies. 

The 2005 Gaza disengagement led to the evacuation and destruction of Homesh, as well as Sa-Nur, Ganim and Kadim in Samaria, and 21 communities in the Gaza Strip. In March, the Knesset repealed articles of the law banning Israelis from entering and being in the four Samaria communities, and in May GOC Central Command head Maj. Gen. Yehuda Fuchs signed an order allowing Israelis to reenter Homesh.

The Education Ministry has so far refrained from granting permits to groups wishing to visit the area as security measures are yet to be set up but stressed that it planned to hold educational trips to Homesh in the future. 

"In light of the change in legislation, the Education Ministry intends to allow tours to be held in Homesh as are currently held in the other regions of Judea and Samaria," it said in a statement. "All trips by the Education Ministry throughout the country, and in Judea and Samaria in particular, are conditioned by the instructions of the police and the military, in order to allow for an appropriate security envelope. The Education Ministry is awaiting the IDF's instructions on the matter and will act accordingly."

Meanwhile, on Monday, the United States criticized Israel for moving the Homesh yeshiva to a permanent spot on state-owned land.

"We are deeply troubled by the Israeli government's recent order that allows its citizens to establish a permanent presence in the Homesh outpost in the northern West Bank," a State Department spokesperson said. "It is inconsistent with both former Prime Minister [Ariel] Sharon's written commitment to the Bush administration in 2004 and the current Israeli government's commitments to the Biden administration."

"The expansion of settlements undermines the geographic viability of a two-state solution, exacerbates tensions, and further harms trust between the parties," the spokesman said. "This is consistent with the views of previous administrations, both Democratic and Republican. We regularly engage with Israeli officials on this issue and will continue to do so."

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Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has instructed the IDF GOC Central Command Yehuda Fuchs to sign a decree that could allow Jewish residency in the former settlement of Homesh in northern Samaria thus fully implementing a controversial measure to lift the restrictions under the 2005 Gaza Disengagement Law, Israel Hayom has learned.

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Entry to Homesh, as well as three other former settlements in northern Samaria, was previously illegal under the 2005 Gaza Disengagement Law, which was repealed by the Knesset in mid-March.

Gallant's decision is one of major security and political significance that has prompted the IDF to prepare for boosting forces in Homesh and mobilizing forces to protect civilians who will now be legally allowed to visit the area after almost 20 years. The matter is expected to lead to further tensions with the Biden administration, which already in March criticized Israel for repealing the disengagement law.

Together with Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, Gallant area also considering a measure that would give official legal status to the yeshiva that was recently established in the former community without state sanction. The yeshiva currently sits on contested land, but it could get a stamp of approval if a plan to relocate it to a plot of state land nearby is finalized.

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The post Gallant instructs IDF to sign decree allowing Jewish presence in Homesh appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.