National Union youth gather in Netiv Ha'avot
National Union youth gather in Netiv Ha'avotElyashiv Levitan

About 500 young members of the National Union on Thursday arrived in the Netiv Ha'avot neighborhood in the town of Elazar in Gush Etzion, to support the residents who are slated to be evicted from their homes.

The Supreme Court in December 2016 ordered the destruction of the Netiv Ha'avot neighborhood, after an unclaimed narrow strip of land not classified as government land was found to run through it.

During Thursday's gathering, the National Union members discussed ways to take actions in the field in order to prevent the demolition.

In addition, a number of other public issues were raised, such as the application of sovereignty over Judea and Samaria, observance of the Sabbath, religion and state, and the issue of infiltrators in southern Tel Aviv.

Agriculture Minister Uri Ariel (Jewish Home), who heads the National Union party, said, "I am happy to see hundreds of young people who care. Wherever I meet you, I receive requests from the field and I thank you for it. It is wonderful to see that you want to be involved in Israeli politics and to make a difference.”

"This is an emergency conference, and this is an opportunity to advance the issues on the public agenda. We held this conference earlier than scheduled do to the special situation of Netiv Ha'avot and out of solidarity with the residents and the challenging reality they face. We will continue to promote the values that are important to you and together we will continue to lead the country to a better place where Jewish values are an inseparable part of it," Ariel clarified.

Regarding unity with the Jewish Home party, Ariel said, "Unity is a value for us and we want unity. We are fighting for unity but we are not getting an answer. We will continue to fight for it. We are a representative and broad sector, and next month we will present a platform that places an emphasis on Shabbat among other things. We will fight for unity but we will allow for the freedom to find our own way."

MK Bezalel Smotrich (Jewish Home) also spoke at the gathering and said, "When you see this wonderful youth, there is no force in the world that can move us from here. The youth of the National Union came to Netiv Ha'avot to express their support for the residents of Netiv Ha'avot with an unequivocal statement - the entire Land of Israel belongs to the people of Israel. This coming Sunday, we will advance with God's help the sovereignty move and take one more step towards a better and more just future for the people of Israel."

Said the secretary-general of the National Union party, Ofir Sofer, "The public agenda in the State of Israel is fraught with many challenges regarding the application of sovereignty in Judea and Samaria, the public Sabbath and the burning issue of the infiltrators. We need the youth to be connected to these issues. It's important for the present and important for the future."

The residents of Netiv Ha'avot said, "We thank the National Union party, which chose to hold a convention of the party's youth in Netiv Ha'avot. The members of the party heard and joined the call by the residents of Nativ Ha'avot to the prime minister to normalize Netiv Ha'avot And immediately approve a master plan for the construction of 350 housing units in the neighborhood.”