To mark the 49th anniversary of the passing of David Ben-Gurion, we launched our “Sde Boker Initiative.” This comprehensive roadmap for the future of the Negev is the result of 16 years of fieldwork, analysis, legal research and activism that have enabled us to formulate a vision for the future, looking ahead to 2050 through the […]
It all started a few months ago. Our field coordinator in the South discovered at least six new, identical, and illegal mosques constructed in the Negev, one after the other. Not long afterward, we got our hands on a video clip that documented a group of Palestinian infiltrators hiding in one of these mosques until […]
On 10 May 2021, the May riots, during the Guardian of the Walls operation, began throughout Israel. It all started when rockets were fired from Gaza on Jerusalem Day (Yom Yerushalayim), and continued in the form of lynches and attacks against Jews in mixed cities, riots on the streets of the Negev, violence and terror […]
Heartbreaking: Yuval Eilat’s widow releases cutting statement: “Our lives have been destroyed, and the camel caravan marches on.” Three weeks after the fatal camel accident that cost Yuval Eilat Uzan his life, a herd of camels was seen roaming the Negev roads this morning. Regavim: “The Ministry of Agriculture’s negligence is a ticking time bomb.” […]
Regavim: The radicalization of the Bedouin community in the Negev is unaddressed – and has resulted in bloodshed Following the murderous attack in Beer Sheva this afternoon in which four people lost their lives, Regavim released an anguished statement: “Once again, the loss of governance in the Negev has taken an intolerable toll in human […]
Regavim: Removing the enforcement chapter from the new Five Year Plan for the Bedouin sector means surrender, and the establishment of Bedouistan in the Negev Enforcement statistics for the past several years are unequivocal: New illegal construction in the Bedouin squatters’ camps is down, and law enforcement is up – significantly, reaching its peak in […]
This morning, Bedouin lawbreakers herding flocks of thousands of sheep invaded the IDF Tzeelim Base, leading to a confrontation with the Israel Police and the Green Patrol who were called out to remove the intruders from the IDF’s live-ammunition training area. The intruders called in backup of their own – Bedouin residents of the Bir […]
Following the decision to suspend the KKL forestation project in southern Israel, the Regavim Movement decried the government’s capitulation, charging this decision as continued “protection payments” to Mansour Abbas that make the next round of violence and domestic terrorism inevitable. The Raam Party and the Bedouin know full well that they can dictate to the […]
This article first appeared on Arutz Sheva Israel National News – Arutz Sheva travelled to Southern Israel with Regavim to witness up close what many call “loss of governance in the Negev,” and to find out whether construction of the three communities the government is planning for the Bedouins will solve the problem or make it […]
Last week, we participated in a Public Security Committee hearing in the Knesset about agricultural crime. Regavim’s Director General, Meir Deutsch, presented the Committee with Regavim’s multifaceted plan to combat the issue. In his opening remarks, Deutsch shared with chairwoman MK Merav Ben Ari that this was the 14th (!) meeting about agricultural crime in […]
Today, we participated in an emergency meeting organized by the Land of Israel Caucus in the Knesset to demand security and safety for the Negev. Meir Deutsch, Regavim’s Director General, spoke to the Members of Knesset about the Negev predicament, and explained why Bedouin settlements that have been legalized are, in effect, still squatter camps. […]
The coalition depends on the votes of the Ra’am party so it is about to pass a law that effectively rewards illegal construction, which is a serious problem in the Arab sector. Without fanfare, the Ra’am party recently submitted one of the shortest bills in Israel’s legislative history. Amending only three words – “14 Sivan […]
The Regavim Movement reacted to the findings of the State Comptroller, released today (Wednesday) in a report focusing on governance in the Negev: “The government can turn the situation in the Negev around – by enacting five practical recommendations that arise from this in-depth and comprehensive report.” Meir Deutsch, Director General of Regavim: “This is […]
Today, the General Security Service (Shabak) released details of the arrest of the Bedouin millionaire Yakub Abu-Alkiyan on suspicion of treason. Meir Deutsch, Director General of Regavim responded: “The fact that Abu-Alkiyan, a millionaire with extensive property and business holdings who maintains close ties with leaders of Israel’s economy, passed sensitive security information to Iranian […]
A resident of Kuseife, a legal Bedouin town in the Negev founded in 1982, decided to expand his assets, and illegally took over land part of the unrecognized Al-Fura squatters’ camp. A few months ago, the resident, who already owns a big villa in Kuseife, began to build a huge compound containing two living spaces. […]
Youssef Albaz, the Imam of Lod, was taken into police custody last night and is being questioned under suspicion of incitement to commit acts of terrorism and violence. The Regavim Movement filed an official complaint earlier this month, including detailed documentation of Albaz’s inflammatory, racist pronouncements and his explicit calls to his followers to commit […]
Regavim calls on any government that is formed not to abandon the Negev. The Negev is a key part of the Zionist vision! But when the State of Israel fails to govern, other forces fill the void. Regavim invites you to take a long, hard look at where we are and where we’re headed in […]
Security Coordinator whose weapon was impounded last year when spiteful, baseless charges were filed against him by criminals, was wounded last night as he fended off a terrorist with his bare hands while protecting his community. Last night (Sunday 30 May) a terrorist who infiltrated from the Gaza Strip stabbed the Security Coordinator of one […]
Today (26 May) we participated in an emergency Knesset hearing to discuss the explosion of lawlessness throughout Israel in recent weeks. The hearing, organized by Regavim and MK Amichai Chikli of Yemina, was attended by many Members of Knesset, local leaders, civil organizations, and residents of mixed cities. In his remarks, Meir Deutsch, Regavim’s Director […]
Friends, For over a week, the Jewish state has been under attack: Alongside incessant rocket fire by the Hamas terror group in Gaza, a wave of domestic Arab terror has swept across Israel. Years of poor governance and a lack of enforcement have served as a breeding ground for Arab riots, antisemitic pogroms and a […]
Regavim launches a hard-hitting campaign, calling upon the Israeli government to stop the downward spiral and save the Negev – before it’s too late. For years, the Israeli government has attempted to counter the loss of governance and the spread of illegal squatters’ camps in southern Israel by offering “compensation” payments and free land to […]
Earlier this year, a Bedouin man invaded into agricultural lands that belong to the Moshav Nevatim, appropriated a piece of land for himself, and put up an illegal hut. The hut was small, but its impact was huge: the intruder decided to stay there and prevent the Moshav’s workers from entering their fields to work […]
Israel’s High Court of Justice denies appeal of landowners whose property has been overtaken by thousands of Bedouin squatters: “This case does not justify judicial interference.” After a decade of legal proceedings, yesterday (Monday) Israel’s High Court of Justice denied an appeal by owners of private property who sought a court-mandated deadline for the removal […]
Ignoring a small problem allows it to turn into a big problem. Last night’s case in point:Bedouin bandits infiltrated the Israel Air Force base at Nevatim; IAF helicopters engaged in an hours-long chase. The State of Israel has been ignoring the cracks in law and order in the Negev for so long, they’ve become a […]
Following last night’s events in Tamra, an Arab town in northern Israel, the Regavim Movement applauds the decisive law enforcement activity by the Israel Police and calls on the leaders of the Israeli-Arab sector to support Israel Police efforts to eradicate organized crime. In recent weeks, the Israel Police have carried out extensive – and […]
Yesterday (January 11), a new poll was published by the Israel Democracy Institute reflecting a dramatic drop in the Israeli public’s trust in its government systems. One glaring finding shows that only 42% of the public express trust in the High Court of Justice, Israel’s highest court. To bring this problem into clear focus, it’s […]
In the last few years, in central Israel, next to Kfar Kassem and on lands zoned for agricultural use, an enormous commercial zone has popped up illegally. With massive warehouses, garages, stores, factories, and sprawling over more than 2000 dunams, the commercial zone is the largest illegal one in Israel. What’s so problematic about the […]
Today (September 7), the Shin Bet security agency announced that it foiled a Hamas bombing attack at Bilu Junction in central Israel. Mahmud Makdad, an Israeli citizen from the Bedouin town of Segev Shalom in the Negev, was apprehended as he attempted to plant an explosive device in a bus stop at the bustling junction. […]
Today (Monday 13 July), Nature and Parks Authority inspectors, accompanied by a police escort, entered the Har Meron Nature Reserve to post court orders on illegal structures built in the protected area. The inspectors quickly found themselves surrounded by a violent mob of residents of nearby Beit Jann, who pelted them with stones and physically […]
This morning (October 6), Shaadi Abu Alkiyan of Hura (28) succumbed to wounds resulting from a collision with a wandering camel last week on the main road to his hometown. At the same time as this fatal accident, two other Israelis were wounded in another car crash with a camel near Ovda. Regavim places the […]
Regavim has uncovered a racket in which the Bedouin are paid off not to damage property they wrongly claim as their own. Israel’s government pays millions of shekels to Bedouin under the guise of “school security” in a massive protection racket, an investigation by Israeli NGO Regavim revealed. Regavim, which focuses on land issues, ‘followed […]
Today (May 16), the Israel Police and General Security Service (Shabak) announced the capture and arrest of a crime and terror cell from the Bedouin town Bir Hadaj in the Negev. All five suspects have been charged with damaging the IDF’s security installations on the Israel-Egypt border in order to facilitate their drug-smuggling operation. Regavim […]
