Deputy Religions Minister Rabbi Eli Ben Dahan visited Thursday at the “Mother’s Vigil” tent that the Women in Green movement has set up near the Prime Minister’s Residence in Jerusalem, and joined the protesters in demanding the application of Israeli sovereignty in the mountainous Biblical heartland of Judea and Samaria.

“We demand that Israeli sovereignty be applied on all of Judea and Samaria,” Ben Dahan said. “This is our land – we were never ashamed of it.”

“I was born in Morocco, and everyone who made aliyah knows that the Jews simply wanted to reach the Land of Israel, and they were never told that one place is alright and the other is off bounds.”

Ben Dahan called on the public to strengthen Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who he said is standing firmly against pressures from within and without. “This morning, we received support from the third largest pension fund in the world, ABP, which announced that it would not boycott Israel. There is no connection between the conflicts of the Middle East and economic policy.”

Ben Dahan expressed his support for the Women in Green and the women who staff the protest tent. “I believe and hope that your power will make all members of the government understand that we must apply Israeli sovereignty on Judea and Samaria without being afraid.

“We were warned when we did so with Jerusalem, and we did it in the Golan, too – yet the state of Israel is still alive,” he added. “The same thing will happen when we do it with Judea and Samaria – at first there will be various statements, but in the end they will get used to it and understand. When our determination is clear, and we project certainty in the justice of our path, everyone will accept it, because that is the world’s nature,” he predicted.

Judea and Samaria include the Biblical sites of Hevron, Shechem, Beit El, Shilo, and many others. The strategically vital are was liberated by the IDF in 1967 after a 19-year Jordanian occupation. While Israel has declared sovereignty over other areas liberated in that war — the Old City of Jerusalem, eastern Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights — Judea and Samaria remain disputed territory.