Settlers Leave Hebron Building They Took Over, but Say Army 'Won't Let Arabs Invade'

Settlers who moved into a building in the West Bank without a permit over the weekend evacuated the premises on Sunday.

On Friday, a settler group said that 15 families had moved into the building, which sits on the main road between the settlement of Kiryat Arba, on the outskirts of Hebron, and the Tomb of the Patriarchs in the city. A Palestinian man from Jerusalem, Mohammed Ja'abari, claimed to be the building's rightful owner, and said last week that he filed a police complaint.

The settlers left the building after the Israeli military said it would secure it.

Harhivi Makom Ohalech, a right-wing NGO claiming to have purchased the building, said that military presence "won't allow Arabs to invade into the building."

To purchase a building in the West Bank, the basic first step in registering property is obtaining a transaction permit, which shows the Civil Administration recognizes that payment has been made for the structure.

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No such permit was issued to the settler group in the case of the Hebron building. Even after such a permit is granted, a long process of inquiries is required via the Civil Administration's registration committee – which can take years – and which in this case hasn't yet begun.