In late August, the Israeli government announced that it intends to resume the controversial construction of wind turbines on the Golan Heights, despite fierce opposition from the Druze community.
Police say it will take a few weeks to prepare and deploy ahead of the renewed construction. This gives government officials and representatives of the Druze community an opportunity to reach an agreement in order to avoid a repeat of the events in June when violent clashes occurred, first on the Golan Heights and then in other Druze communities in the North, such as Majdal Shams, resulting in injuries to both police and protesters, including five who sustained serious injuries.
The clashes in June prompted the government to order a temporary freeze to the work while negotiations took place. However, to date, no breakthrough has been achieved. Some 26,000 Druze live on the Golan Heights, which is also home to about 22,000 Jewish Israelis.
The project, undertaken by Energix Renewable Energies, consists of 21 wind turbines, with an output of 104 megawatts, at an estimated cost of NIS 700 million.
The project is located east and southeast of Majdal Shams, the main Druze town on the Golan Heights, on the southern foothills of Mount Hermon, close to the border with Syria. Energix aims to provide power to 50,000 households for twenty years.
The project involves clearing mines left since the 1967 Six Day War and will restore the land to agricultural use for the owners. It also includes power transmission infrastructure and will provide hundreds of jobs during construction, and dozens of jobs during the period of operation. It will be connected to the national power grid by underground cable.
Energix will pay rent of hundreds of millions shekels annually, but some Druze residents claim that the people from whom the land for the project was leased are not the true owners.
There is also opposition from environmentalists who claim that the turbines are harmful to birds flying on the main north-south migration route. But the main opposition comes from the Druze, whose leader in Israel, Sheikh Muafak Tarif, warned the government to stop the work to construct wind turbines in the Golan Heights, or face “a reaction the country has hitherto not seen.” Tarif urged the prime minister to seek an arrangement that would be acceptable to Druze residents.
The Prime Minister’s Office said that “there is still an attempt to reach an agreement,” and while the efforts are ongoing, “as a first step, there has been a decision to renew some of the turbine work.”
According to Kan, Netanyahu is seeking to secure various benefits for parts of the Druze community in order to entice compromise on the issue, but protesters are threatening to renew demonstrations if the work resumes.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi told Druze leaders in a meeting that the military wants “equality and partnership,” noting that the community has made an exceptional contribution to national security through service in the IDF. “Even in difficult times, we must act according to the law and seek good solution,” Halevi said.
While the Energy Ministry believes that the Golan Heights is a perfect location for wind farms, Druze villagers see the wind turbines as a threat to their agrarian way of life.
I spoke with Amir Khnifess, chair of the Israel Druze Center, to get his response.
Why do the Druze on the Golan Heights oppose the construction of the wind turbines?
There are quite a few reasons for this. It starts with the fact that many Druze on the Golan believe that these wind turbines have a negative impact on their agriculture and their environment, and for these reasons they oppose the construction of massive wind turbines on the Golan. But to be honest, I believe that the majority in the Druze community are campaigning against the turbines for more than one reason. It’s not just about the turbines. We have the feeling that there is a government in Israel that is spitting in the face of loyal citizens, the Druze. There is a government that is doing everything to expel us from the public sphere. It’s about the nationality law that many Druze have the feeling turns them into second-class citizens. It’s about the Kaminitz law [against illegal construction] where many youths have been criminalized. If you bring all these reasons together, it explains the Druze anger in the last few months against the wind turbines.
So how do you explain the fact that the government is also considering transferring more than NIS 70 million to the Druze community?
There is no relation between the two issues. This money is money that our local councils deserve. It’s the same way the government transfers money to other local councils up and down the country or to different religious or cultural communities. It has nothing to do with the fact that the majority of Druze on the Golan Heights are opposing the wind turbines. It’s what we deserve from our government as equal citizens in a democratic state. Do you know why Druze are so angry about the turbines? Road legislation and railroad tracks in different parts of the North, power lines, national parks. All these national projects pass through Druze land. When it comes to wind turbines, there is a feeling that it’s not just a national project. There is a real attempt to take away Druze land.
What specifically do the Druze want from the government?
All we want is to be perceived and treated as equal citizens in this state. I promise. Nothing else. And I think we deserve it. We’ve been an integral part of Israeli society from the early days, before the state was established. I’m the grandson of one of the four architects of the life covenant [formerly known as the blood covenant, the loyalty pact signed between Druze leaders and the pre-state Yishuv]. I know exactly how much effort the Druze made for the establishment of the state. And this is what we deserve? And I’ll ask another question. Is it really worth risking this covenant between us and the state for some wind turbines? Is this logical?
Is it specifically this government you are angry with or previous governments as well?
No, we have nothing against previous governments. There were no protests or demonstrations. And the minute the government decided to halt the turbines project in June, there were no demonstrations in any Druze towns and villages. The Druze demonstrations are a reaction to government policy.
Recently, four Druze residents were killed in a tragic shooting in Abu Snan in the North. The Israeli media talk about the violence in the Arab community. Is it the same in the Druze community?
I have to bring this back to the main issue. When you ask yourself what the Druze have been receiving in return for their loyalty: zero housing, zero planning, and zero budgets. You can see this violence, which of course affects all communities in the North, and you ask yourself ‘Is this now the most important thing, the question of the wind turbines?’ There are so many important issues for the government in Jerusalem to address. If it really cares about its citizens, and particularly its loyal citizens, then these are the issues the government should address rather than wind turbines on the Golan Heights, when you know that the majority within the Druze community perceive it as expropriating the little land that remains for them.
What, in your opinion, will happen if the government decides to renew construction of some of the turbines, even though the Druze community wants to freeze the work until an agreement is reached with the government?
I do believe that there are responsible officials in Jerusalem, and I want to take this opportunity to send a clear message to our prime minister and our government and ask them not to renew the work on the wind turbines until they reach an agreement with the Druze community. We don’t want to think negatively. And trust me, we will find a way to come to an agreement. There is a way. But before that, we can’t proceed with this project without an agreement. That will be a disaster for everyone, and we will all regret it. And it’s not worth it. I do believe that the life covenant between us is much more important than any project, definitely when we are talking about wind turbines. ■