Under international law, every settlement built in territory under a military occupation is illegal. But Migron, an outpost built in the West Bank without even the approval of the Israeli government, is doubly illegal.
The settlement has been ordered evacuated multiple times since 2003, and after numerous extensions it became the largest of Israel’s “unauthorized” settlements. In August the Israeli High Court finally weighed in on the question, giving the government until April to complete the process.
The government made it clear it was just going to ignore the order, and was talking about a “compromise” to allow a “voluntary evacuation,” purring the process off until 2015. Today, the High Court again ruled, saying that this was not acceptable, and that Migron needs to be evacuated by August 1.
Israel’s right-wing MPs are up in arms at the decision, accusing the High Court of “favoring the Arab interest over Jewish settlement.” One, MP Aryeh Eldad, went on to say that the court would be responsible for “any blood spilled in Migron,” as a number of the illegal settlers have vowed to resist the evacuation by force.
