Diaspora Affairs Minister Nachman Shai on Saturday responded to the remarks of Deputy Economy Minister Yair Golan, who described the residents of the town of Homesh as “subhuman”.
Shai, who was speaking at cultural event hosted by journalist Liat Regev, surprised Regev and the participants by saying that in his opinion the yeshiva in Homesh should be left intact, and added that he also said this to Rabbi Mordechai Dimentman, the father of Yehuda Dimentman who was murdered in the recent shooting attack near Homesh.
"He told me about his family," said Shai about his conversation with Rabbi Mordechai Dimentman. "He says that everyone is spread all over the country, from Maalot in the north to the south, including in Judea and Samaria. His son was not a subhuman, he was a guy who believed in his path. He asked me not to evacuate Homesh, I told him I could forward the request that this happen, but while Homesh should be evacuated, the yeshiva should be left alone. A yeshiva is a sacred place that if you enter it in the morning and leave it in the evening and do not live there and have not turned it into a place of residence, then there should be a yeshiva. It does not change the principle that Homesh has been evacuated. It is not going to be settled."
On Deputy Minister Golan’s statements, Minister Shai said that "when I looked at the father and saw the great pain and saw their surroundings, they are not subhuman. Absolutely not. They are people who believe in their way, they believe that they are settling the Land of Israel, they are also settling the Greater Land of Israel, and they are also Jews."
The head of the Samaria Regional Council, Yossi Dagan, who is currently in a protest tent outside the Prime Minister's Office, responded to Minister Shai's remarks, saying, "I am happy that the Labor Party also understands that murder is not rewarded, that is inconceivable. The mistake of the Disengagement must not be repeated, certainly not as a reward for terrorism. The Homesh yeshiva must remain in place and continue to spread Torah throughout Samaria and the entire Land of Israel. That is the true Zionist answer to terrorism."