Strategic Assessment

Separation from the Palestinians within the two-state political framework, either as a result of a bilateral agreement or a unilateral Israeli decision, will require mass evacuations of Jewish settlements in the West Bank located outside the large settlement blocs, even in the face of opposition by settlement residents and others. In order to preserve national unity, it is necessary to prepare now for the contingency and implications of such evacuations. This essay examines evacuations of two settlements in terms of the conduct of the various parties. Alongside the lessons to be learned from the 2005 disengagement, analysis of these two evacuations affords additional insight into the issue of mandatory withdrawal from settlements, and invites conclusions regarding practical implementation of extensive evacuations in particular and resolution of domestic conflicts in general.