Israel Land Authority Cracks Down on Bedouin Negev Land Encroachment
By TPS, YANIR YAGNA
Israel Lands Authority (ILA) inspectors, supported by police units, launched Operation “Southern Hawk 3” on Monday to tackle illegal invasions of state lands in the Negev.
The large-scale operation focused on new encroachments around the areas of Beersheba, the Bedouin town of Sa’wa, and the Nevatim Air Force base.
Advanced AI technology, including aerial scans, helped detect unauthorized structures. The ILA said hundreds of demolition notices were issued.
Most recently, the ILA and police evacuated the illegal Bedouin outpost of Al-Sir in the Negev in September, following an order by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
During the operation, some residents burned homes in protest while police worked to maintain public order and prevent escalation using crowd-control measures.
UMM AL-HIRAN, a Bedouin village in the southern Negev.
The evacuation targeted land designated for a new residential neighborhood in the western part of the community, which authorities said would allow development work to proceed and ensure orderly planning for the region.
Ben-Gvir: ‘Slowly, but surely, we are taking back the Negev’
Ben-Gvir praised the move, saying, “Slowly, but surely, we are taking back the Negev lands. This operation is a central pillar of the policy to restore sovereignty and eradicate the phenomenon of illegal construction in the Negev and across the country.”
Salman Ibn Hamed, a leader in Bir Hadaj and former director-general of the Neve Midbar Regional Council, condemned the evacuation, saying, “They are serving the whims of Ben-Gvir and this extremist government. What we are seeing here is destruction, not solutions. People here are begging for solutions, and the government only knows how to destroy.”
Original source: https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-872571