Esh Kodesh (, lit. ''Sacred Fire'') is an Israeli outpost in the West Bank near Shilo. It falls under the jurisdiction of the Mateh Binyamin Regional Council. Israeli outposts in the West Bank are considered illegal both under international law as well as under Israeli law. The population in 2005 was under 12 families.

History

Esh Kodesh was founded in 2000 near

Shvut Rachel Shvut Rachel ( he, שבות רחל) is a former Israeli illegal settlement in the West Bank, retroactively designated a "neighborhood" of the settlement of Shilo, in the West Bank. Shvut Rachel sits between the Palestinian villages of Turmus Ay ...

, one of several such settlements in the area.The extinguishing and rekindling of the `Holy Fire'
''

Haaretz ''Haaretz'' ( , originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , ) is an Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel, and is now published in both Hebrew and English in the Berliner f ...

'' It was named for Esh Kodesh Gilmore, 25, who was murdered by Palestinian terrorists while working as a security guard at a branch of the

National Insurance Institute The National Insurance Institute (Instituto Nacional de Seguros or INS) is an autonomous institution, which was responsible for Costa Rican insurance monopoly in that country until 2008, when insurances were opened to a competitive market. The a ...

in East Jerusalem. ''

Esh Kodesh Esh Kodesh (, lit. ''Sacred Fire'') is an Israeli outpost in the West Bank near Shilo. It falls under the jurisdiction of the Mateh Binyamin Regional Council. Israeli outposts in the West Bank are considered illegal both under international law ...

'' is also a book of sermons delivered by the Admor of Piaseczno in the Warsaw Ghetto from the outbreak of World War II in September 1939 until July 1942, when the Jews of the ghetto were deported to the death camp at Treblinka. According to ARIJ, Israel confiscated land from the two Palestinian villages of Jalud and

Qusra Qusra (also Kusra) ( ar, قُصرة) is a Palestinian village in the Nablus Governorate of the State of Palestine, in the northern West Bank, located 28 kilometers southeast of Nablus. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS ...

in order to construct the Israeli outposts of

Ahiya Ahiya ( he, אחיה) (also transliterated as Achiya or Achia) is an Israeli outpost in the West Bank, about 1.5 km southeast of the Palestinian village of Jalud. It falls under the purview of the Mateh Binyamin Regional Council. Israeli outpost ...

and Esh Kodesh. To meet the security challenges of living in an area where their presence generates hostility, they have undergone Mishmeret Yesha self-defense training. In 2010, the Israeli Supreme Court sentenced Zvi Strook, a resident of Esh Kodesh and the son of

Orit Strook Orit Malka Strook ( he, אוֹרִית מַלְכָּה סְטְרוֹק, born 15 March 1960) is an Israeli far-right politician. She serves as a member of the Knesset for the Religious Zionist Party, and served as member of the Knesset for Tkum ...

, head of the Human Rights Organization of Judea and Samaria, to 18 months in prison for the kidnapping and assault of a Palestinian teenager. In 2012, the IDF civil administration ordered Struck to vacate the land of Jalud resident Fauzi Ibrahim, which he had illegally occupied since 2010. Strook appealed the order, and when his appeal was rejected by the IDF appeals committee in 2014, he appealed to the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

. In December 2015, the Supreme Court rejected his appeal, but granted him 12 months to vacate the land. In September 2011, the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...

established a base near Esh Kodesh On 23 September 2011, Israeli security forces were called in to break up a clash between the settlers and a group of 300 villagers from

. Due to the growing tension, residents of Qusra armed with flashlights and sticks began to patrol the perimeter of their village at night to thwart possible incursions by Esh Kodesh settlers. In early January 2013, after the Israeli High Court of Justice had ruled that the Palestinians of Qusra should be allowed to use one of their fields near Esh Kodesh, the Israeli Border police tried to enforce the ruling. This led to clashes with the Esh Kodesh settlers, leaving two Border Police injured. On 5 January 2013, approximately 200 Palestinians cut through the fences of the vineyard and attacked the vineyards and residents of Esh Kodesh. Twelve residents were injured, with one taken to the hospital. The vineyards were destroyed, a security vehicle was damaged, and the attackers neared homes before the military arrived. The incident was part of a continuing dispute between the Esh Kodesh settlers and nearby Palestinians over land ownership.

Price tag attacks

Settlers from Esh Kodesh have participated in

price tag attacks The price tag attack policy ( he, מדיניות תג מחיר), also sometimes referred to as "mutual responsibility" (), is the name originally given to the attacks and acts of vandalism committed primarily in the occupied West Bank by Is ...

on Palestinian property in the West Bank. 'Price tag' attack in West Bank following prevented lynch of settlers
'' The Jerusalem Post'', 8 January 2014 *21 October 2011: A group of four armed and masked men from Esh Kodesh went to the Palestinian village of Jalud, threw a stun grenade at Palestinian workers who were harvesting and fired in the direction of the harvesters, some of whom were then clubbed. According to the testimony of Israeli eyewitnesses, the IDF and

Border Police A border guard of a country is a national security agency that performs border security. Some of the national border guard agencies also perform coast guard (as in Germany, Italy or Ukraine) and rescue service duties. Name and uniform In diff ...

present did not intervene, other than to fire tear gas grenades both at the harvesters and the wounded.

Amira Hass Amira Hass ( he, עמירה הס; born 28 June 1956) is an Israeli journalist and author, mostly known for her columns in the daily newspaper ''Haaretz'' covering Palestinian affairs in the West Bank and Gaza, where she has lived for almost th ...

Eight months after bloody olive harvest battle, still no justice in sight

, 22 August 2012 *3 January 2013: According to Palestinians, in a village south-east of Nablus, four cars had their tires slashed, with the words "Solidarity with Esh Kodesh", and a

Star of David The Star of David (). is a generally recognized symbol of both Jewish identity and Judaism. Its shape is that of a hexagram: the compound of two equilateral triangles. A derivation of the ''seal of Solomon'', which was used for decorative ...

spray-painted on a nearby wall. *7 January 2014: Cars were burnt and price tag graffiti, reading "Esh Kodesh", "revenge", and a

, were sprayed in Madama, Nablus, a Palestinian village south of Nablus.Settlers torch 2 Palestinian vehicles near Nablus
Ma'an News Agency, 8 January 2014. *8 January 2014: 30 fruit trees were cut down in a Palestinian garden center next to Kfar Qassem. The site was blazed with the slogan "Regards Eish Kodesh."'Settler 'terror': Price tag in Kfar Qassem, foiled plot against demolisher
Ynet, 10 January 2014

References

{{Mateh Binyamin Regional Council Religious Israeli settlements Populated places established in 1999 Mateh Binyamin Regional Council 2011 in the Palestinian territories 2013 in the State of Palestine 2014 in the State of Palestine Conflicts in 2011 Conflicts in 2013 Conflicts in 2014 1999 establishments in the Palestinian territories Israeli outposts Unauthorized Israeli settlements