21 Years After Disengagement, Israeli Families Return to Ganim in Northern Samaria

Israeli families returned to Ganim in northern Samaria on Thursday, reestablishing the community 21 years after residents were removed during Israel’s 2005 Disengagement.

Families from the new Ganim community group moved onto the site as dozens of caravans were placed to provide housing. A branch of the Bnei David institutions has also been established there.

The return follows government moves to expand and legalize communities in Judea and Samaria. Ganim is one of four northern Samaria communities evacuated during the Disengagement, alongside Homesh, Sa-Nur and Kadim.

Smotrich: Reversing the Disengagement

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich hailed the return as the reversal of what he described as the disastrous policy that removed Israelis from northern Samaria and Gush Katif 21 years ago.

“Twenty-one years after the terrible sin of the disengagement from Gush Katif and northern Samaria, we are finally erasing the disgrace of the expulsion from northern Samaria,” Smotrich said.

Smotrich said 11 communities are being physically established this summer and predicted a much larger Israeli presence across northern Samaria.

“There were four; there will be 18 communities, 11 of them immediately, including Homesh, Sa-Nur, Ganim and Kadim. And there is more to come,” he said.

Security Importance of Samaria

Smotrich also emphasized the strategic importance of maintaining an Israeli presence in Samaria, arguing that communities in the region form part of the security belt protecting major Israeli population centers.

He specifically linked the Israeli presence in Ganim and Samaria to the security of cities including Afula, Hadera, Kfar Saba, Ra’anana, Herzliya and Netanya.

“We are strengthening the security belt, killing the idea of a Palestinian state, and making clear that the Land of Israel is ours, forever,” Smotrich said.

Defense Minister Israel Katz also attended the ceremony and delivered a similar message.

“This is our home, this is the Land of Israel, this is where we will remain forever,” Katz said.

Dagan Calls Return a ‘Historic Rectification’

Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan accompanied the families as they entered their new homes, describing the return as a historic correction after the destruction of the community in 2005.

“Instead of uprooting, we are bringing construction. Instead of retreat, we are bringing communities,” Dagan said. “Ganim will be a huge community—ten times larger.”

Ilan Kotsky, chairman of the Ganim group, said residents see themselves as the pioneers of a new chapter for the community. He predicted Ganim could grow to approximately 1,000 families within a decade.

New resident Moriah Maslati described Thursday’s move as more than a relocation, calling it a moment of revival and return for families rebuilding Jewish life where a community was uprooted 21 years ago.

The return to Ganim comes alongside the reestablishment of Homesh and Sa-Nur, while Kadim is also expected to be reestablished, marking a sweeping reversal of the 2005 Disengagement policy in northern Samaria.