25 years later IDF to submit operational assessment on feasibility of reestablishing permanent presence at Joseph’s Tomb in Nablus, amid renewed debate over restoring Israeli sovereignty at the site.
Nearly 25 years after the IDF withdrew from Joseph’s Tomb compound in Shechem (Nablus), public and political pressure is mounting to reestablish a permanent Israeli presence at the holy site.
According to a report in the Yediot Aharonot daily, the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee’s Subcommittee on Judea and Samaria, chaired by MK Zvi Sukkot (Religious Zionism), recently held a special session where, for the first time, the possibility of restoring Israeli sovereignty and a continuous Jewish presence at the site was formally discussed.
Senior defense officials were invited to the hearing, including Col. Lahat Shemesh, Deputy Head of the Civil Administration, and a representative of the IDF Central Command. The latter pledged that within six weeks, the committee would receive an operational opinion from the IDF assessing the feasibility of returning to the location.
Samaria Regional Council Head Yossi Dagan, who is spearheading the initiative alongside MK Sukkot, revealed during the session a 2000 official IDF protocol stating that the withdrawal was intended to be temporary, with a future return in mind. “No nation in the world gives up its holiest site,” Dagan declared. “After October 7, it’s clear to everyone: when we flee from terror, it chases us. Returning to Joseph’s Tomb will restore security in Shechem and across Israel.”
MK Sukkot also sharply criticized successive governments: “It is unacceptable that the State of Israel violates agreements it signed and neglects such a significant site. Joseph’s Tomb must once again host a permanent Jewish presence as part of our sovereign responsibility in Judea and Samaria. Leaving the site in the hands of the Palestinian Authority harms both national security and our values.”
Support for the initiative also came from former senior IDF officials. Brig. Gen. (res.) Harel Knafo, former Samaria Brigade Commander, stated: “Establishing a perimeter around Joseph’s Tomb is a matter of decision—nothing more. In places where Judaism and the State of Israel are not respected, nothing else will be.”
MKs Amit Halevi and Limor Son Har-Melech also voiced strong support. “Today’s battle is not just over land—it is over identity and spirit, and Joseph’s Tomb embodies that,” said Halevi. Son Har-Melech added, “The disgrace of night-time entry missions must end. We are in the Land of Israel, not in exile.”
Rabbi Dudu Ben Natan, father of fallen reservist Sgt. First Class (res.) Shuva’el Ben Natan HY”D, concluded the discussion with a heartfelt appeal: “As a bereaved father and a yeshiva student, I call to right this injustice and restore full presence at Joseph’s Tomb.”
