RESETTLEMENT OF MIGRON'S RESIDENTS MAY COUNTER

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TEL AVIV 000220

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE; NEA/IPA FOR
GOLDBERGER/SHAMPAINE/ROSENSTOCK/PECCIA; NSC FOR
ABRAMS/SINGH/PASCUAL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/30/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL IS KPAL KWBG
SUBJECT: RESETTLEMENT OF MIGRON'S RESIDENTS MAY COUNTER
SETTLEMENT EXPANSION COMMITMENTS

Classified By: Ambassador Richard H. Jones for reasons 1.4 (b),(d)


1. (C) Summary: On January 23, the State Prosecutor's
Office announced that Prime Minister Olmert and Defense
Minister Barak will strive within six months to achieve a
consensual evacuation of the Migron outpost, whereby these
settlers would be relocated to an alternative site. The
announcement also noted, however, that the MOD reserved the
right to request an extension if the evacuation was not
accomplished by the mid-August timeframe. Whether the GOI
evacuates Migron within six months or chooses to request an
extension from the High Court of Justice (HCJ),it does not
question the legal status of Migron and has already
acknowledged that the outpost must be evacuated. While we
would welcome the GOI's evacuation of Migron -- established
after March 2001 -- and consider its dismantlement as part of
the GOI's commitment to the USG on outposts, the MOD has told
emboffs that these settlers will be relocated to another
settlement in the West Bank. We are concerned that the
relocation of these families to a West Bank settlement may
contradict other GOI commitments on settlement expansion. As
the GOI is looking at ways to address Migron's evacuation and
relocation of these families, the USG should consider how to
respond if the GOI evacuation plan leads to the expansion of
other settlements. End summary.


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MOD Confirms Report
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2. (C) Oded Herman, Senior Advisor to Ministry of Defense
(MOD) Pol-Mil Director Amos Gilad, confirmed to EconCouns and
Econoff on January 24 reports saying that Prime Minister
Olmert and Defense Minister Barak have decided to evacuate
the Migron outpost. According to Herman, the MOD is seeking
a consensual evacuation of the outpost, whereby these
families will be moved to a legally recognized settlement.
Depending on the available space and town planning scheme of
the chosen location, the families will either move their
caravans to the new location or a new neighborhood will be
built for them. Presently, the MOD is considering the Adam
settlement, located north of Jerusalem on the West Bank side
of the barrier, as a possible option for resettlement.
(Note: Peace Now's Settlement Watch Coordinator estimates
that between 240-300 people live in Migron. End note)


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Reserve Right To Request Extension
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3. (C) As the GOI acknowledged in December 2006 that
Migron's establishment was not authorized by the government
and is built on privately-owned Palestinian land, the legal
status of Migron is not in dispute. The two remaining issues
surrounding Migron are when to dismantle the outpost and
whether settlers will do so voluntarily. The MOD will likely
request an extension from the HCJ if an agreement with the
settlers to voluntarily relocate is not reached by the August
timeframe. Since late 2006, the MOD has requested nine
extensions from the Court regarding either the immediate
evacuation of Migron or providing the Court with an overall
outpost evacuation plan. A hearing on Migron is scheduled to
be held on February 6.


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Comment:
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4. (C) Although Migron may not be evacuated immediately,
the MOD is looking at ways to address the outpost's
dismantlement and relocation of its residents. As the GOI is
looking at ways to address Migron's evacuation and relocation
of these families, the USG should consider how to respond if
the GOI evacuation plan leads to the expansion of other
settlements. In previous conversations, Herman has noted
that in general, settlers from outposts that the MOD is
seeking to evacuate are unwilling to resettle in Green Line
Israel or in areas within settlement blocs such as Betar
Illit or Modi'in Illit, which are primarily ultra-Orthodox,
where existing housing is available. All indications so far
show that the MOD will acquiesce to requests by settlers to
relocate to other West Bank settlements in exchange for
voluntarily dismantling some outposts. While we understand
and share the GOI's desire to evacuate Migron and other
outposts as peacefully as possible, we are concerned that the
relocation of settlers from these sites may portend the
construction of new neighborhoods or the expansion of

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settlement boundaries that may contradict other GOI
commitments to the USG.

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