Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that Israel plans to restore “law and order” to the Negev. “The Negev is running wild. We will rein it in,” said the premier during a tour of the region together with Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz and Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, according to a statement from his office.
“We are coming to return the Negev to the State of Israel. This means settlement on a scale we haven’t known, and it also means providing for the Bedouin residents. But it means, first and foremost—restoring law and order,” he continued. His remarks come on the backdrop of an ongoing police operation in the Negev to crack down on criminal activity in the south, which has the potential to evolve into a national security threat. "We must understand that the criminal threat and the security threat have merged into one, with tens of thousands of weapons, with drones crossing borders, and other threats,” said Netanyahu. “Therefore, we will bring a national project to achieve all these goals, but primarily to restore governance to the Negev,” he added.
Netanyahu, Katz and Ben-Gvir’s first stop on the tour was Kibbutz Revivim, located about half an hour south of Beersheva, where they observed the Bedouin town of Bir Hadaj and were briefed by Israel Police Inspector-General Kobi Shabtai, Israel Security Agency Director Ronen Bar and IDF Deputy Chief-of-Staff Maj.-Gen. Amir Baram on police enforcement against the smuggling and possession of illegal weapons in the south, the significant seizures of weapons and counter-smuggling operations carried out by police forces in the area and along the borders, according to the Prime Minister’s Office. (Ed note: The Negev desert and the Sinai Peninsula will be a big deal. Amalek lived and fought in the Negev desert. Moses and Hebrew kings fought him there, including king David. He is also mentioned in Psalm 83:7.) (Read More)
