Violence erupts during evacuation of Jewish outpost in West Bank

Violent confrontation erupted between Israeli far-right activists and police officers carrying out evacuation of an unauthorized outpost in the West Bank on Wednesday.

Some 1,000 residents and supporters protested in Amona, which was built on private Palestinian land east of Ramallah city.

The settlers, vowing to passively resist the eviction, barricaded inside homes and the synagogue after erecting barriers on the roads to the outpost.

Some settlers threw rocks, bottles, injuring at least 13 police officers.

Most of the protesters were youths, chanting "A Jew doesn't evict a Jew!"

Israeli Police spokeswoman Luba Samri said four activists were arrested for rioting.

Live broadcasts on television showed the evacuation progressing slowly, with unarmed police holding settlers and taking them to a bus.

By the afternoon, seven families were evicted with hundreds of activists and residents still inside. The families agreed to leave peacefully after discussions with the police, according to a police statement.

Authorities said the eviction is expected to continue into the night hours.

Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan urged the protesters to avoid violence.

"This is a difficult and sad day for the people of Israel, a day the law enforcement authorities are asked to implement a High Court decision, ordering the destruction of a community the state helped found, and evacuation of residents from the homes they have been living for 20 years," he said in a statement.

"Despite the difficulty and big pain, I urge all those on the hilltop: Let the police and security forces do their job," Erdan said.

Amona, east of the Palestinian city Ramallah, is the largest among about 100 outposts scattered across the West Bank. These outposts were erected by ultra-right settlers without permits from the Israeli authorities, but the governments often have turned a blind eye to their construction.

There are an additional 120 settlements that Israel considered as legal.

Both outposts and settlements are illegal under international law as they were built on lands occupied by Israel in the 1967 Mideast War, where the Palestinians wish to build their future state.

Over the past months, Amona became a symbol of the hardline settlement movement and a major issue in Israeli politics and the society at large, with implications for the fate of the entire settlement movement.

Israel's top court ruled in 2014 that the Amona outpost must be demolished because it was built on private Palestinian land. The court later set Feb. 8 as the final date for demolition.

This was the first time the Israeli government has evacuated a Jewish outpost in four years. Endit