JERUSALEM, 12 June 2004 — The Israeli government could begin offering compensation as early as next month to Jewish settlers who voluntarily leave their West Bank and Gaza Strip homes.
A committee has begun working out the criteria for the payout — including the size of the property and the home and the number of years the family has lived in the enclave. Israeli media reported the average compensation package will be about $300,000 per family.
A government official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Cabinet is expected to approve a compensation bill “around July or maybe a little later.” That is expected to clear the way for the government to begin paying cash advances immediately, before the full Parliament approves the bill, he said.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s plan calls for a withdrawal from all 21 Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip and four West Bank enclaves by September 2005.
Eager to push ahead with the plan well before that deadline, he has instructed the government to offer financial incentives, including the cash advances, to settlers who leave voluntarily.
The Haaretz newspaper reported yesterday that evacuating Gaza — including compensating the 7,500 settlers there and removing military installations — could cost up to $1.9 billion. Removing the West Bank enclaves will cost more than $110 million, it said.
Officials said Thursday that “hundreds” of settlers have expressed interest in leaving. The local councils of the northern West Bank settlements of Ganim and Kadim, for instance, have made contact with a lawyer to prepare for compensation negotiations, said Debbie Drori, a spokeswoman for Kadim.
She estimated that half of the 28 families in Kadim have signed up with the attorney.
Drori and other residents said they would not fight the army. “It will be interesting to see what they offer me. If it is enough, based on my expectations, it is very likely I will agree,” said Gershon Bloomberg, a Ganim resident.
But there are also hundreds of ideological settlers, particularly in Gaza, who say they will resist any attempt to remove them from their homes. Payouts before a planned March 2005 Cabinet vote on whether to begin removing settlements could force a showdown between Sharon and hard-liners in his coalition, bringing it closer to collapse, political analysts said.
— Additional input from agencies
