Hundreds of people from the Bedouin community demonstrated on Thursday outside the offices of the Regulation of Bedouin Settlement Authority in Beersheba, protesting the demolition of homes in Bedouin communities.
The demonstration came in the wake of comments made the previous day by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. Addressing the issue, he said he would continue demolishing “more and more and more” illegally built homes in the Negev.
“We want to live in peace, we want cooperation," said Talal Alkernawi, the mayor of Rahat. “This conduct is unacceptable to us, we strongly condemn it. To boast that you [Ben-Gvir] are a minister who demolishes? Who are you demolishing, the citizens of the state?”
“We want coexistence, but our next step is to establish a tent city at the entrance to Beersheba, at the entrance to Ofakim, at the entrance to Dimona.”
Ben-Gvir had earlier referred to the planned protest and criticism of his ministry’s demolition policy during a Local Government Conference held on Thursday.
“They told me that Bedouin whose homes were demolished are sleeping in a school in Arad. They are there because they say ‘Ben-Gvir is demolishing our homes.’ So I am telling them: they should prepare many more schools across the Negev, because I am going to demolish more and more and more,” he said.
He also said that since taking office, more than 5,000 illegal structures have been demolished, and that land equivalent in size to Tel Aviv and Givatayim combined has been returned to the state.
“Anyone who builds in violation of the law must understand one thing: illegal construction will not pay off. No protest will change this policy,” he said.
Thousands of homes lost, damages estimated at NIS 250 million
In response, the Regional Council for Unrecognized Villages in the Negev strongly criticized Ben-Gvir and disputed his figures, noting that “the area of Tel Aviv and Givatayim is 55 square kilometers, while the area cleared in the Negev is at most 2 square kilometers.”
Further, it said that thousands of families have lost their homes and that the cumulative economic damage from the demolitions is estimated at around 250 million shekels.
“I hear the crying and wailing of the mayor of Rahat against enforcement of illegal homes in the Negev," Ben-Gvir responded. "And I am telling him: the era of lawlessness is over, the era of governance has begun. We will destroy every illegal house in the Negev down to its foundations.”
Haggai Reznik, head of the Rifman Institute for the Development of the Negev, also criticized the Bedouin leadership, claiming that it opposes regulatory efforts.
“As long as the formal and informal leadership of the Bedouin opposes every attempt at regulation, including legislation that would allow demolition only when a legal regulatory solution exists, it continues to speak with a double voice to the public it claims to represent and to the State of Israel," Reznik said. "It only says what not to do, and not how to fix things. This is, at best, limited wisdom, and in the worst case the main driver of chaos in the Negev.
"The Rifman plan is the only comprehensive solution, and any Zionist government will be required to adopt it,” he said.
Plans are already set in motion, Bedouin Settlement Authority says
The Regulation and Development of Bedouin Settlement Authority also responded to the protest, saying that it has been working in recent years to advance regulation and practical solutions on the ground.
“As part of these efforts, for example in Neighborhood 1 in Abu Krinat, residents now live in a regulated neighborhood with infrastructure, roads, and educational institutions," it said. "At the same time, the authority is promoting extensive development of neighborhoods across the Negev, intended to provide housing solutions for families from the diaspora."
It added that it is advancing two main programs: a “focusing plan” to develop new plots with infrastructure for families living in unregulated conditions without protection or services, and a “leveling” program aimed at regulating land ownership claims in settlements, an issue it said has long prevented development in the Negev and left many Bedouin citizens without basic services.
“There is no contradiction between upholding the rule of law and advancing development, investment in infrastructure, and changing the reality in the Negev," the authority said. "On the contrary, regulation according to the law enables the state to invest in infrastructure, build public institutions, strengthen personal security, and create a better future for residents."
"We call on Bedouin society to accept the proposal on the table and choose a path of regulation, development, and a better future for families and children in the Negev."