Tazpit reported that on Saturday night, Tisha B’Av 5772, some 50 men, women and children, members of the settlement nucleus of Yad Yair, together with the Benjamin Settlers Committee and residents of Gush Talmonim, mourned the destruction of Jerusalem, and shared their private grief over the destruction of their settlement more than three years ago by the Civil Administration of Judea and Samaria.
The group read the book of Lamentations and recited mournful odes for the destruction of the Temple. In an atypical fashion, IDF forces did not interfere with the Jewish presence there, which lasted several hours.
The Jewish activists told Tazpit that they chose the ruins of their homes for the recitation of Lamentations in order to remember well the destruction of the Temple. They also emphasized the strategic importance of the place in blocking the spread of the city of Ramallah, and the fact that the place was bought at full price by Jews, and there are no questions regarding their legal ownership.
According to Hakol HaYehudi, more than twenty years ago, on 11 Nissan, 5751, March 26, 1991, Dolev resident Yair Mendelson was murdered, and local residents wanted to establish a new settlement in his memory. Then Defense Minister Moshe Arens did not approve the settlement, and after a political struggle a military base was built on the spot, with a park in memory of Yair Mendelson next to it. In 2004 the base was dismantled, leaving in the area only a civilian presence, which included an active synagogue and the park, where major events were held frequently.
After the army left the area, the synagogue and the park became subject to incessant harassments by Israeli leftists and by Arabs. Over the years the electrical system was destroyed, the synagogue was looted and set on fire, and the memorial stone was vandalized.
After it became clear to the residents of Gush Talmonim that the army is unable to prevent the looting and destruction of the place, it was decided to exercise the right of the Jewish landowners and establish a settlement. In 2008 left-wing activists, Arabs and journalists burned down the synagogue, and replaced the flags of Israel PLO flags.
In response, on the same day, Jewish settlement began in the place, which lasted four months, until Israeli government forces completely destroyed the place, removing the Yair Mendelsohn memorial stone. The evacuation was carried out by IDF commanders in the field in clear violation of a High Court order issued the same day.
