The Israeli government has approved the construction of 5 illegal Jewish settlements in the Najaf (Negev) desert in the south of the country.
According to the newspaper Yediot Ahronot, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett came up with the initiative to build new settlements. The idea was supported by Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked, as well as Israeli Housing and Construction Minister Zeev Elkin.
The Cabinet eventually approved the relevant decision.
Bennett called the project for the construction of new Jewish settlements an important step towards the settlement of the country’s desert regions.
The Prime Minister stressed that Najaf is some region outside of Israel, but a part of the country, significant both in terms of resources and management.
At the end of January, Bennett said that Israel’s efforts to control the population of the Najaf desert were not producing the desired result.
Today, there are 38 villages in the Najaf desert, where 85,000 ethnic Arabs live, mostly Bedouin Palestinians.