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Bedouins protest the demolition of houses in the town of Bir Hadaj on Sunday, October 16, 2016. Credit: Negev Coexistence Forum. Published by Haaretz
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Protesters say Jewish residents of Negev kibbutz are pressing authorities to demolish illegally built homes in adjacent Bedouin village.>/i>

by Almog Ben Zikri for Haaretz

Some 1,200 residents of Bir Hadaj, located in the Negev, demonstrated on Sunday opposite the Ramat Hanegev Council building to protest the policy of demolishing illegal buildings in the Bedouin village.

The protesters briefly blocked traffic on Highway 40, in coordination with the police.

Mohammed Zanun, a Bir Hadaj resident who participated in the protest, said he has noticed a recent policy change. "Once they would only knock down new homes. Now they are demolishing old family homes in the community," he said. "They demolished seven homes, with children and infants without justification." He added, "We are negotiating with the authorities to arrange Bedouin settlement and we have not reached agreements yet, so it is wrong to come and demolish when we are in the midst of negotiations."

Most of Bir Hadaj is recognized, but part of it is on private land purchased by Jews. The state occasionally demolishes buildings built on this land, or new buildings built illegally anywhere in the village.

Authorities believe there are hundreds of buildings on the privately-owned sections.

Bir Hadaj is adjacent to Retamim, southwest of Be'er Sheva, and belongs to the Ramat Hanegev Regional Council. Some of the protesters' signs accused Retamim of being responsible for the demolition policy.

According to villagers, Retamim is pressuring the authorities to establish a regime of strict enforcement. "They demolish Bedouin homes to expand fields for Jews," one sign read. Another stated, "They our destroying our homes and Retamim is building."

Moreover, the Housing and Construction Ministry announced last year the establishment of five new towns in the Negev, with one of them – Neveh Gurion – slated to be built on private lands. However, officials familiar with the situation say the plan will not be implemented.