Back in the day, when Naftali Bennett was still a right-wing extremist, he and his disciples attributed symbolic importance to Khan al-Ahmar, as if it was Jerusalem – a token of Zionism and Jewish sovereignty in the Land of Israel. Demolish this Bedouin "Carthage," situated between Kfar Adumim and the highway linking up to the Jordan Valley, or death.
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All of this was their gospel when Benjamin Netanyahu was prime minister. Netanyahu had tremendous strategic and diplomatic assets and a clear proactive approach toward Iran. He treated the Khan al-Ahmar issue as he treated Gaza – with a policy of trying to avoid rocking the boat.
The actual prime minister, Yair Lapid, and his appointed prime minister, Naftali Bennett, don't have such assets that they must safeguard and cultivate. Evacuating Khan al-Ahmar could cause a dual domino effect that wasn't in play before. In the past, Israeli officials warned of outrage from the European Union and other international ricochets, but today existential interests hang in the balance for the Lapid-Bennett government. One of them is the government's very survival.
It's hard to imagine the Ra'am party and Joint Arab List maintaining their anti-Zionist alliance with the Jewish left plus the elitist right-wing foundations. However, ever since the Sheikh Jarrah crisis in May, even real estate matters are used by Hamas as a reason to fire missiles and perpetrate various other forms of attacks. If there is another escalation, the IDF will have to act according to the peoples' will, not according to what's convenient for the coalition and Naftali Bennett.
The current conduct in relation to Khan al-Ahmar isn't exactly a direct continuation of past disregard of the court's orders. It is part of a surprising phenomenon pertaining to the new government. This government is far more left-wing than could have been expected, and the element that should have been nationalist-right-wing has completely evaporated.
For example, the evacuation of Khan al-Ahmar is exactly the type of thing this government could have greenlighted and executed. On every single issue, however, we can clearly see the assertive independence of this government's leftist ministers.
In terms of foreign policy, Lapid has already sold everything Netanyahu had stored in the safe. Energy Minister Karine Elharrar is negatively impacting significant aspects of the economic ties provided by the Abraham Accords. Ministers Omer Bar-Lev and Gideon Sa'ar are implementing clear leftist policies, each in their own realms.
The government's request to delay Khan al-Ahmar's evacuation is understandable. It is an attempt to avoid a crisis in the early stages of the coalition's term. If the evacuation occurs six months or a year from now, we will have to follow what concessions the government has made and to whom.
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