Residents of Hayovel, an illegal outpost whose homes are due to be razed, received NIS 77,000 per family from the state when they settled the site, according to documents Haaretz received.
The status of Hayovel came before the Supreme Court on Wednesday. Defense Minister Ehud Barak asked the court to give the state another six months to respond to the question of when it plans to raze 12 illegal homes at Hayovel and six others in Horsha.
For their part, the settlers and politicians on the right have began lobbying to legalize the outpost.
Ahead of any legal or political decision, a pamphlet was presented to the cabinet that details the efforts undertaken by the state to establish Hayovel and Horsha as proof that the settlements had official backing for their creation, and therefore must be legitimized.
The pamphlet states that in December 2002, the deputy accountant general at the Finance Ministry ordered Bank Tfahot to provide mortgages for 16 homes on Hayovel hill. Some of the mortgages were a conditional grant, which went as high as NIS 77,000 per family.
On the whole, the state authorized mortgages and grants totaling NIS 240,000 per family. The documents also show that the Housing Ministry paid for infrastructure work for 63 housing units, at a cost of NIS 1.3 million, and work for an additional 40 housing units, at a further cost of NIS 2.5 million.
The state's role in establishing Horsha, according the the material presented, was even greater. In 2003, the Housing Ministry approved NIS 2.2 million for infrastructure work for 10 housing units in Horsha. Earlier, in 2001, the ministry also approved the establishment of a multipurpose structure for the community at a cost of NIS 200,000. An additional NIS 300,000 was spent on a hostel.
In 2000, the then deputy defense minister in the government of Ehud Barak, Ephraim Sneh, ordered the construction of ritual bath even though he was aware that the community had not received legal approval for being there.
In a letter from the Civil Administration, it is stated that "the defense minister authorized the request even though the outpost is on hold."
Another document shows that Amidar prepared 11 mobile homes for the residents of Horsha.
The Public Works Authority built a security railing on the road leading to the outpost, and the Postal Authority set up postal boxes for mail to be delivered.
The settlers say that all this proves that the outposts were established with the support of the state and consequently, they must be legitimized, not razed.
Right-wing MKs and deputy ministers belonging to the Land of Israel Lobby toured the area. Coalition chairman Ze'ev Elkin (Likud) said that "the proposal Barak is making to delay the [government's] decision by six months is not a solution."
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