New Israeli Settlement Established in West Bank on 30th Day After Terror Attack

Fourteen families have settled in the new Israeli community of Neot Harim, established between the settlements of Naveh Tzuf and Nachliel in the West Bank's Benjamin region. The inauguration ceremony took place on the 30th day following the killing of Natanel Kron, who was murdered in a terror attack near the Ein Ri'a spring. The establishment of Neot Harim is the third settlement founded in Benjamin within the last six months and the second in just a few weeks. According to the Benjamin Regional Council, this is the first settlement established in the area between Naveh Tzuf and Nachliel in decades. Its creation aims to strengthen the connection between Naveh Tzuf and Ataret and the Dolev-Talmonim bloc, expanding the contiguous settlement area across Benjamin. The settlement was made possible after infrastructure work, including the paving of a 3.5-kilometer access road, was completed in the complex terrain. The establishment follows years of activity by two farms in the area, operated by Zvi Bar Yosef and Zvi Lax, which maintained an Israeli presence. Yisrael Gantz, Head of the Benjamin Regional Council and Chairman of the Yesha Council, dedicated part of his speech to Kron's memory, linking the new settlement to the continuation of Israeli settlement in the region. "Today, on the thirtieth day of Natanel Kron's murder, as his family gathers at his grave, our hearts are with them in pain and longing," Gantz stated. "Precisely on this day, not far from the spring where Natanel was murdered, we are inaugurating the new settlement of Neot Harim and saying loudly: 'In your blood, you shall live.'" Gantz addressed those responsible for the attack and those seeking to displace settlers, asserting that Neot Harim's establishment signifies continued Israeli presence. "To the terrorists and all who try to uproot us from this area, we say: You tried to murder us, to make us leave, and today families are coming here to live, in a new settlement. We are here, we won," he declared. Yishai Merling, Chairman of the Settlement Division, also attended, emphasizing the settlement's strategic location and the need for infrastructure development to support its growth and the establishment of a permanent community for the young families who have moved there.