Knesset advances bill allowing Israelis to return to evacuated West Bank settlements

The Knesset advanced a bill late on March 20 that would allow Israeli settlers to return to areas of the West Bank evacuated in 2005 as part of then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's disengagement plans.

In December, far-right lawmakers introduced the legislation to lift the ban on entering four West Bank settlements – Homesh, Sa-Nur, Ganim and Kadim – that were evacuated when Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip, Haaretz reports.

Since the disengagement in 2005, which saw Israeli settlers removed from the Gaza Strip and parts of the northern West Bank, the law has barred Israeli citizens and residents from accessing the sites without the Israeli army's permission. Though the army has allowed visits to the settlements, it has officially prevented their re-establishment.

Shortly after the August disengagement, a yeshiva was established at Homesh, effectively making it an unauthorized outpost. It was built on privately owned Palestinian land near the village of Burka and has been comprised of temporary structures that are evacuated periodically and which the settlers subsequently rebuild. In recent years, it has also become the site of mass gatherings and a symbol for the settler movement.

By law, Israelis are prohibited from residing or constructing buildings in the settlement areas of the northern West Bank without army approval. In practice, however, Israel hasn’t barred settlers from operating the Homesh yeshiva.

The proposed legislation would repeal the provisions of the Disengagement Law pertaining to the four settlements and leave in place the compensation the law provided to those evacuated from the settlements.