5 4 1 2 3 172 173 Chapter Thirteen |The Destruc�on of Gush Ka�f Chapter Thirteen The Destruc�on of Gush Ka�f The evacua�on date according to the government's decision Shortly a�er the decision to carry out the Disengagement Plan was approved, which included the unilateral departure of all residents of the Gaza Strip and four se�lements of Northern Samaria - Ganim, Kadim, Homesh and Sa-Nur - from their homes and the evacua�on of civilian se�lements and army and police bases by the Israeli government, the date was also set: 08/14/2005. No government official bothered to check the Hebrew date of this day and its implicated conse- quences: Leaving home and se�lement, dismantling the community, school and educa�onal se�ng, loss of livelihood, separa�on from a familiar landscape and a breach of faith and ideology. Only when the details reached the residents of Gush Ka�f did they find out that the Hebrew date was Tisha B'Av—the date of the destruc�on of both tem- ples, the date of the expulsion from Spain and the date of the uproo�ng of the Ka�f region. A�er some delibera�ons and an appeal from the rabbis, the Prime Minister moved the evacua�on date to the 18th of Av. S�ll, for the residents of Gush Ka�f, the Disengagement Plan became an actual Destruc�on Plan; the destruc�on of their homes, community, beau�ful landscape, a first-rate pioneering Zionist enterprise, memo- ries, hopes, and livelihood of past and future. And just as it was 2000 years ago, during the destruc�on of the second temple, Gush Ka�f residents believed that unjust hatred was the main mo�va�on for the destruc�on.1 The last days before the forced evacua�on A week before the evacua�on, the heads of the campaign headquarters were invited to a mee�ng in the Atzmona se�lement with Dan Harel, the GOC, and Major General Guy Tzur, the Southern Ground Forces Commander in Chief. The two announced that any resident of Gush Ka�f who does not leave within 48 hours of the distribu�on of evacua- �on orders would forfeit the compensa�on they are en�tled to. Briga- dier General Tzur warned them that, at some point, the evacua�ng soldiers' determina�on would overcome their sensi�vity. The Mateh members le� the mee�ng with a heavy heart, feeling that the officers were obtuse and did not understand the residents' wishes not to leave their homes voluntarily despite their pledge for non-violence.2 On Wednesday, the 5th Av, 5765 (08/10/2005), thousands gathered in front of the Western Wall in supplica�on and a cry to God to cancel the decree of evacua�on and deporta�on at the last minute. About half a million people came to the prayer, and the presence of ultra-Orthodox sector representa�ves stood out in a rare display of solidarity with their 'orange' brethren. The Western Wall has not seen such a large crowd for years, not even on Tisha B'Av. The human swarm stretched from the Western Wall plaza to the Zion Gate. Crowds climbed onto the roofs of houses.3 In the evening of that day, the residents of Pe'at Sadeh gathered for a farewell ceremony from their se�lement. The ceremony was held around the monument commemora�ng a member of the se�lement, the late Nisan Dollinger, who was murdered three years earlier in a terrorist a�ack. At the end of the ceremony, the residents returned to their homes for five more days. On Friday, the 7th of Av, 5765 (08/12/2005), a mee�ng was held at the campaign's headquarter during which they reviewed the situa�on of each se�lement. On Saturday night, the night of Tisha B'av Av, all the residents of Gush Ka�f gathered for a rally in Neve Dekalim. It was the last �me it would be possible to gather all the residents in one place, since from Saturday evening onward, a lockdown was imposed on each se�lement. Rafi Seri, chairman of the Mateh, announced: "We are staying un�l the last minute.. We will sit at home un�l they come to evacuate us. We will not raise our hands, we will not curse any soldier, we will not beat them, no violence whatsoever. We will protest by not coopera�ng with the evacua�ng forces carrying out the order."4 A belief that there was s�ll a chance that everything could be overturned was in the air and strengthened the residents.5 Even in the many Torah lessons held in the various se�lements, the rabbis tried to maintain a glimmer of hope that the scroll had not yet been signed, and in one moment, everything could change. People packed the contents of their homes, hoping to be able to put everything back in its place. Un�l the last moment there was no despair. At the end of the Tisha B'av fast, at midnight, the Kissufim checkpoint was finally blocked for the entry of civilians into the Gaza Strip. From that moment on, traffic was only possible in one direc�on - out. During the night, an atmosphere of ela�on s�ll prevailed in the various se�lements. In Kfar Darom, for example, the residents and their guests gathered in the synagogue and danced and sang un�l dawn. Similarly, in Neve Dekalim, a sense of community was palpable as singing and dancing took center stage in the mass gathering on the lawn before the council building. The rabbis offered words of encouragement, and the heads of the campaign gave final instruc�ons. On the following two days, Sunday and Monday, 10th and 11th of Av 5765 (08/15/2005-08/16/2005), it was possible to leave Gush Ka�f independently, without the interven�on of the army or police. The army called it 'voluntary evacua�on' and promised sensi�vity and assistance. On Monday, a few hours before the start of Opera�on Yad La'Achim, during which the IDF and the police were ordered to deliver evacua�on orders to the residents of Gush Ka�f, Neve Dekalim residents closed the se�lement's gates to prevent their entry. The morning prayers were held near the gate, in front of the soldiers knocking on it. The tension, anger, and hope were at their peak.6 First, the residents blocked the main gate of Neve Dekalim. Then, when they discovered that soldiers were approaching the eastern gate of the se�lement, they hurried to stand in front of it in a long line, holding each other's hands. This happened at every new entry way the soldiers had discovered. The residents preceded them, created a long human chain to stop them, and also held mo�va�onal talks and psychological warfare with them, repea�ng and telling them: "You will never forgive yourselves if you par�cipate in the brutal expulsion of Jews from their homes, who don't even know where they are going."7 1 Demonstrators in Kfar Darom against the Disengagement Plan 2 Malka Cohen tearfully says goodbye to her house in Neve Dekalim 3 Women sobbing during the evacua�on from Tel Ka�fa 4 An inscrip�on condemning the deporta�on on a road in Gush Ka�f 5 Yitzhak Cohen performs the mourning ritual of ren�ng his garment ('Kri'aa') during the evacua�on
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