The residents of the town of Migron held a festive cornerstone laying ceremony on Thursday that was attended by a slew of politicians and public figures.
Migron was demolished on the order of the Supreme Court in 2012. Despite government promises to rebuild the town on a different location, many of the former residents have been without permanent housing for the last six years.
Instead of the promised village, residents lived in caravans adjoining the town of Kochav Yaakov located 30 minutes north of Jerusalem.
"During such events, it is customary to rejoice, but as someone who accompanied Migron from the moment of the evacuation to the present day, this is not a happy event," said Jerusalem Affairs Minister Ze'ev Elkin. "We would be happy if we had another legal system that made a logical decision, and I long for the days when the justice system will do justice."
"The settlement will grow and expand this way from time immemorial. The evacuation attempts will only lead to the strengthening and expansion of settlement," added Elkin.
"Laying the cornerstone means that the territories of Judea and Samaria are not negotiable. It is not a subject for sale," said Housing Minister Yoav Galant.
"We are laying a cornerstone for Migron and we will build it. I will see to it that the Israeli government does so by the end of the year " promised Galant.
The original Migron was destroyed after Arab residents of the area claimed ownership of the land, this despite the fact that the Arab claimants withdrew their lawsuit when requested to present proof of their claims, and the Attorney General found that the claims could not be substantiated.
Nevertheless, Peace Now stepped in and pushed the case on, eventually getting the High Court to rule that Jews cannot live on and develop any land not currently registered as state land.
In the court decision, the judges Miriam Naor, Tzvi Zilbertal and Ori Shoham rejected the claim of the company Al Watan to having purchased "plot 10" of the town where the seven buildings are located.