As part of deals struck to form Israel’s new government last week far-right parties and Likud have agreed to enforce a “Judaization” plan in the Galilee and Negev regions which have a significant population of indigenous Palestinian citizens.
The Religious Zionism alliance led by Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir has previously said it intended to strengthen Jewish settlement in the two regions located in northern and southern Israel respectively.
This will likely be done through offering economic benefits and discounts to Jews to encourage them to move to those areas according to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
Under the new government the enforcement of the Israel Land Authority’s policy will fall under Ben-Gvir’s authority as national security minister. His Jewish Power party will also receive the Negev and Galilee Development Ministry according to the terms of his coalition deal with Likud the party of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The accord between Netanyahu’s party and Religious Zionism said to include discounts on land other benefits for Jews only in addition to the expansion of a law that allows communities to disqualify potential residents.
Palestinian citizens of Israel who live in the Negev region have long accused the Israeli government of attempting to uproot them through various tactics.
Those include confiscation of lands from native Palestinians and turning landowners into tenants. Additionally the Israeli government has been accused of preventing the expansion of Palestinian villages and encircling them with new Jewish settlements.
Anti-Palestinian policies
Ben-Gvir campaigning on anti-Palestinian far-right policies has surged into the mainstream in Israel in recent years.
Among other controversial remarks is his frequent categorization of Palestinian MK colleagues as “terrorists”. He has also called for the deportation of his political opponents.
In his youth his views were deemed too extreme by the army which banned him from compulsory military service.
So far he has reportedly secured several agreements with Likud that have raised alarm for Palestinians living in the occupied territories as well as those with Israeli citizenship.
