The tour was initiated by Israel Ganz, Head of the Binyamin Regional Council, and participants included MKs Orit Strouk, Micki Zohar, Avi Dichter, Simcha Rothman, Yuli Edelstein and Moshe Abutbul.

 

During the tour, we stopped off at the illegal school near the Allon Road, just north of the community of Kochav HaShachar. Regavim’s Director General, Meir Deutsch, and Legal Advisor, Att. Boaz Arzi, explained the strategy of how schools serve as anchors for new, illegal, fabricated outposts.

 

We presented the policymakers and their staff with our latest report about illegal schools. Our report reveals that, over the last decade, the Palestinian Authority has built 100 (!) schools without permits in strategic areas.

 

You might be thinking: ‘These schools are crucial for the education of Palestinian schoolchildren!’ But no. Our data indicates that these schools are no humanitarian necessity; they were quickly set up, without permits, in order to advance the Fayyad plan.

 

The density in PA schools (313 students on average per school) is lower than in Israeli schools (337 students on average per school) and much lower than the density in schools in Jordan (476.9 students on average).

 

An analysis of our data also proves that these new schools weren’t built to compensate for problems of long distances. All of the schools, without exception, were established between a few hundred meters to three kilometers from already-existing schools.

 

You see, the PA knows all too well that Israel is unlikely to knock down the illegal schools. Just imagine what would happen should Israeli authorities enforce the law! The backlash of the international media and community would be enormous.

 

We thank the Members of Knesset from the Caucus who clearly value the Land of Israel and work hard to protect it. More than ever, the State of Israel needs its legislators to stand up for its moral and legal rights in Judea and Samaria, as well as its strategic interests in the region. Regavim will continue to be at the forefront of this important battle.

 

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