The police and the Israel Defense Forces on Tuesday avoided taking steps to evacuate settlers who took over a Palestinian building in Hebron, pending a legal review of the settlers' claim that the empty structure was purchased legally in exchange for money.

Defense Minister Amir Peretz said Tuesday that he is waiting for the completion of the legal review of the matter. In the meantime, the IDF has deployed soldiers to provide security for the dozens of settlers who have moved into the building.

The secretary general of Peace Now, Yariv Oppenheimer, sent a letter to the defense minister Tuesday in which he demanded that he order the immediate evacuation of the settlers from the building.

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Oppenheimer writes that he was shocked to discover that the IDF is endangering the lives of its troops in order to secure settler activity in the area.

The director of the activist organization known for its work in mapping settler activities in the territories, said that populating any building in the territories or any property sale involving Arabs and Jews requires the authorization of the defense minister.

In the absence of such a permit, Oppenheimer notes, Peretz must order the evacuation of the settlers from the area.

"It is within your authority and it is your obligation to order the IDF to evacuate the structure immediately," Oppenheimer writes.

Meanwhile, the international observers in Hebron (TIPH) said Tuesday that they had been informed by the IDF Tuesday that the settlers had legally purchased the building from its Palestinian owners, and that they hold documents proving the legal ownership.

Meanwhile, conditions in the structure are not fit for living.

The building, situated on "Worshiper's Way," between Kiryat Arba and Hebron has no windows, no running water or toilet amenities, and no electricity.

In order to weather the freezing temperatures, the families currently occupying the building have set up tents inside the rooms.

A generator, a large water tank, and toilets have been set up outside the building.

The top floors of the building have no floor tiles. But Noam Arnon of the Jewish Council of Hebron says that in the end, 20 families will live in the house.

The rushed entry into the house apparently stemmed from growing pressure that one of the Palestinians involved in the sale had come under from Palestinian Authority sources.

The local military commanders paid the settlers a visit and said there was no problem from a security point of view.

The structure is well known to the IDF because it is used for security details during Friday prayers as the building overlooks Worshipers Way.