The Supreme Court ordered the IDF to present a timetable for allowing residents of the Jenin, Tulkarm, and Nur Shams "Refugee" Camps to return to their homes, despite an IDF statement that the security conditions necessary for the residents' return have not yet been met.
The ruling was handed down in response to a petition submitted by Arabs in the area against the IDF Central Command, the Defense Minister, and the National Security Minister.
The petition was heard by Supreme Court President Isaac Amit and Justices Alex Stein and Khaled Kabub.
Following the decision, Finance Minister and Minister in the Defense Ministry Bezalel Smotrich, chairman of the Religious Zionist Party, issued a harsh statement against the court and called on the Prime Minister and Defense Minister to instruct the IDF not to cooperate with the ruling.
Smotrich described the Supreme Court's decision as "reckless," warning that allowing residents to return would lead to the restoration of terrorist infrastructure in northern Samaria. Stressing that his own remarks are a "strategic warning," he lashed out at the three justices who issued the ruling: Yitzhak Amit, Alex Stein, and Khaled Kabub.
"The three Supreme Court justices, Amit, Stein, and Kabub, are endangering Israel's security," he said.
Otzma Yehudit chairman and Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir also criticized the Supreme Court ruling. “The IDF cannot fight terrorism when its hands are tied by decisions made in air-conditioned courtrooms in Jerusalem. As Defense Minister, I will lead a policy of decisive victory, not containment. We will not allow terrorist camps to once again become breeding grounds for terrorists; we will not withdraw the IDF before the threat is removed, and we will not return to the conception that brought upon us the disaster of October 7.
“Responsibility for Israel’s security lies with the authorized political and military leadership, not with Supreme Court justices. Tally Gotliv, as Justice Minister, will act to restore the Supreme Court to its proper proportions. We are not going back to October 6. Not in northern Samaria, not in Gaza, and not anywhere else. Period," Ben-Gvir added.
Binyamin Regional Council head and Yesha Council chairman Israel Ganz said: “The Supreme Court is harming Israel’s security, bringing about with its own hands the next October 7, in Netanya, Kfar Yona, and Afula, and endangering thousands of soldiers who will have to reconquer the area. These are not refugee camps, they are terrorist camps that have become fortresses in which terrorist battalions were established. Thousands of soldiers risked their lives to dismantle them, and now the Supreme Court is paving the way for them to be rebuilt. Terrorist fortresses need to be flattened, not rebuilt."
Beit El Council head Shai Alon said: “This is a blatantly illegal order. It is a serious and dangerous intervention in a clearly security-related matter, and it is obvious that it will cost lives. Would it make sense for the Supreme Court tomorrow to also rule that Gazans and Hamas should return to homes that were located along the border fence near the kibbutzim? Apparently, there are no surprising answers when it comes to the Supreme Court, and even that is possible for it. It is inconceivable that while the IDF itself determines that the security conditions still do not allow the return of Palestinian residents, judges would allow terrorist infrastructure to raise its head again."
Alon called on the government and the defense establishment “to do everything possible to stop this delusional decision. Here in Beit El, it is enough to look at the nearby Jalazone refugee camp to understand the magnitude of the danger: if its residents had been evacuated for security reasons, who would be willing to take responsibility and order their return today against the military’s position? The Supreme Court is playing with fire here and endangering the lives of hundreds of thousands of residents of Judea and Samaria and all Israeli citizens."
The Im Tirtzu movement responded: “After October 7, it is clear to everyone that decisions of this kind endanger Israel’s security in general and the security of residents along the seam line in particular. We call on the Prime Minister to announce that the residents will return to their homes in 70 years. That is, after they stop educating their children to murder Jews, stop paying salaries to terrorists, and stop glorifying terrorists. That is the timetable."