Middle East Monitor / March 6, 2020
Israeli occupation authorities yesterday demolished all Palestinian homes in the Palestinian Bedouin village of Al-Araqeeb in the Negev for the 176th time.
The village was first levelled in July 2010, and every time the residents of Al-Araqeeb rebuild their tents and small homes, occupation forces return to raze them, sometime several times in a month.
Al-Araqeeb’s houses, which are inhabited by over 20 Palestinian families, are built of wood, plastic, and corrugated iron.
Located in the Negev (Naqab) desert, the village is one of 51 “unrecognised” Arab villages in the area and is constantly targeted for demolition ahead of plans to Judaise the Negev by building homes for new Jewish communities. Israeli bulldozers, which Bedouins are charged for, have demolished everything, from the trees to the water tanks, but Bedouin residents have tried to rebuild it every time.
Bedouins in the Negev must abide by the same laws as Jewish Israeli citizens. They pay taxes but do not enjoy the same rights and services as Jews in Israel and the state has repeatedly refused to connect the towns to the national grid, water supplies, and other vital amenities.
In its ruling, the court said the villagers had “broken into state-owned land” by rebuilding their demolished homes.
