Al-Arakib evacuation
Photo: Herzl Yosef
MK El-Sana in village
Photo: Herzl Yosef
'Village evacuation constitutes war against Bedouins'
Al-Arakib residents vow to rebuild structures demolished by Land Administration. MK El-Sana: Demolitions will lead to intifada in Negev
Shortly after Land Administration workers completed the razing of structures in al-Arakib and left the area, residents of the Bedouin village began to rebuild the homes, the Negev Coexistence Forum said Wednesday afternoon.
Al-Arakib, which is located near Rahat, is not recognized by the state.
During Wednesday's demolition, Knesset Member Talab El-Sana (United Arab List-Ta'al) barricaded himself in one of the homes. He was forcefully removed by police officers and lost consciousness at some point. Before collapsing he said, "These demolitions will lead to an intifada in the Negev."
Village resident Sheikh Siach al-Turi told Ynet, "This is a war of independence against the Bedouin population and the Arab public in general. We will continue to build. The state should be ashamed of itself."
Shlomo Tziser, an official with the Land Administration's southern district, said, "The court ruled that they (al-Arakib residents) must evacuate the area, but the State of Israel's laws apparently do not apply to them. We said we would evacuate them again if they returned, and that's what we did."
Last week some 1,300 police officers equipped with clubs, helmets and crowd-dispersal gear entered al-Arakib at dawn to secure Land Administration workers who demolished 45 structures at the site. The residents, backed by left-wing activists, lit large bonfires. A woman was arrested and a number of Bedouins were taken in for questioning.
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