From a Strategic National Enterprise to a Political Tool | Col. (Res.) Amir Noy

The article examines the transformation in the status of Jewish settlement in the Land of Israel, from a national enterprise that crossed political camps to a tool primarily identified with one camp. The author, Col. (Res.) Amir Noy, describes how settlement, which was a central component of Labor Zionism and state-building, became identified with religious Zionism and Gush Emunim after the Six-Day War and especially after the Yom Kippur War.

The article, by Col. (Res.) Amir Noy, examines the historical transformation in the status of Jewish settlement in the Land of Israel. The author argues that settlement was not born with Gush Emunim or religious Zionism, but was a central tool of the entire Zionist movement from its inception, through the kibbutzim, moshavim, and 'Tower and Stockade' settlements. After the establishment of the state, settlement served to build the land, absorb immigration, develop the periphery, and strengthen borders. The turning point, according to the article, is the Six-Day War in 1967, which expanded the area under Israeli control. The author notes that even after the war, settlement in the territories was not exclusively identified with the right, as evidenced by the Allon Plan and the Galili Document, and the establishment of settlements like Merom Golan (1967), Mevo Hama (1968), and El Rom (1971) by the Labor movement. The significant change occurred after the Yom Kippur War, in 1973-1974, when the center of gravity of settlement in Judea and Samaria shifted to Gush Emunim and religious Zionism. The article presents a paradox: the settlement itself did not change, but the political identity of the settlers changed, and the national enterprise became a subject of political and sectoral struggle. The author asks whether the change is in the settlement or in its political meaning, and what happened to the national value of settlement itself.