Jews have right to settle in land of the Bible

The above picture demonstrates very clearly that a European Jew is European and an African Jew is African and an Indian Jew is Indian. On what basis do aliens who converted to Judaism settle on a land that does not belong to them?

Last update - 00:20 01/01/2009

Ya'alon: Jews have right to settle in land of the Bible

By Chaim Levinson, Haaretz Correspondent

Moshe Ya'alon, the former army chief and current minister in Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet, said on Wednesday that Jews have an "unassailable right" to "settle anywhere, particularly here, the land of the Bible."

Ya'alon spoke during an appearance marking the 25 years since the founding of the West Bank settlement of Eli, southeast of Ariel.

he minister, who holds the strategic affairs portfolio while also occupying the title of vice premier, said Eli, which is tucked deep in the heart of the disputed territory, "breathes life into the Zionist vision in the face of the rising Arab nationalism."

"The withdrawals [from the Gaza Strip and the northern West Bank in 2005] whetted the appetites of our neighbors," Ya'alon said. "It is not easy saying this to a nation which was promised peace if only it made a few more concessions."

"[Israel] must revive the values of Zionism and to derive power and morality from it," Ya'alon said. "Eli is an example and a model to be imitated."

Eli is one of the settlements on whose grounds stand a number of illegal outposts that are slated for evacuation. Ya'alon did not specifically refer to the outposts in his remarks, yet his position on the subject could be ascertained from the spirit of his statements.

Ya'alon touched off a controvery last month after he told a closed-door meeting of far-right activists that he was "not afraid of the Americans" and that anti-settlement groups like Peace Now were "viruses" to Israel.

Despite his fiery rhetoric, Ya'alon did not participate in a controversial gathering at the Likud party headquarters devoted to bolstering Israeli construction in the West Bank.

Senior ministers from the ruling Likud party on Wednesday pulled out of a political rally organized by supporters of West Bank settlers to protest the American demand to freeze Israeli construction in the Palestinian territories.

Likud ministers Gilad Erdan, Yuli Edelstein, Michael Eitan, and Moshe Kahalon canceled their scheduled appearances out of fear that their participation would be interpreted as an inner-party mutiny against the premier.

Earlier Wednesday, Likud MK Carmel Shama announced that he too would not be attending the gathering. Earlier this week, Shama confirmed he would participate in the meeting.