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<h1 class="title">Israeli forces demolish unrecognized al-Araqib
village for 107th time</h1>
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<div class="stamp">Dec. 22, 2016 - <font size="-2"><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774556">http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774556</a></font><br>
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NEGEV (Ma'an) -- <br>
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Israeli forces Thursday demolished the unrecognized al-Araqib
Bedouin village in the Negev of southern Israel for the 107th time.<br>
<div>According to locals, Israeli bulldozers demolished the village,
including an arbor used by the al-Hussi family in the nearby Bir
Haddaj village.<br>
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<div>A yard and a tree belonging to the Bin Hmeid family in the Wadi
al-Niam village and an outdoor toilet were also demolished, locals
told Ma’an.<br>
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<div>Israeli forces last demolished the village less than a month
ago.<br>
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<div>An Israeli police spokesperson was not immediately available to
comment on the demolitions. </div>
<div>Israeli forces began targeting the village with demolitions in
2010, along with filing multiple lawsuits against the residents
and imposing more than 2 million shekels ($527,920) worth of
fines.<br>
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<div>The first demolition of al-Araqib took place more than six
years ago on June 27, 2010.</div>
<div>Al-Araqib is one of 35 Bedouin villages considered
“unrecognized” by the Israeli state. According to ACRI, more than
half of the approximately 160,000 Negev Bedouins reside in
unrecognized villages.<br>
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<div>While Bedouins of the Negev are Israeli citizens, the villages
unrecognized by the government have faced relentless efforts by
the Israeli authorities to expel them from their lands in order to
make room for Jewish Israeli homes.<br>
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<div>The classification of their villages as “unrecognized” prevents
Bedouins from developing or expanding their communities, as their
villages are considered illegal by Israeli authorities.<br>
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<div>Israeli authorities have also refused to connect unrecognized
Bedouin villages to the national water and electricity grids,
while excluding the communities from access to health and
educational services, and basic infrastructure.<br>
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<div>Rights groups have claimed that the demolition of al-Araqib and
other unrecognized Bedouin villages is a central Israeli policy
aimed at removing the indigenous Palestinian population from the
Negev and transferring them to government-zoned townships to make
room for the expansion of Jewish Israeli communities.<br>
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<div>Indigenous rights groups have also pointed out that the
transfer of the Bedouins into densely populated townships also
removes them from their traditional semi-nomadic lifestyles which
is dependent on access to a wide range of grazing land for their
animals.<br>
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<div>Former UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous
Peoples James Anaya released a report on the treatment of the
Bedouin in the Negev back in 2011, shortly before the Israeli
cabinet approved plans to relocate some 30,000 Bedouins from 13
unrecognized villages to government-approved townships, reporting
that Bedouins in the permanent townships "rank on the bottom of
all social and economic indicators and suffer from the highest
unemployment rates and income levels in Israel."<br>
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<div>The unrecognized Bedouin villages were established in the Negev
soon after the 1948 Arab-Israeli war following the creation of the
state of Israel.<br>
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<div><span style="font-size: 11pt;"></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Many of the Bedouins were
forcibly transferred to the village sites during the 17-year
period when Palestinians inside Israel were governed under
Israeli military law, which ended shortly before Israel's
military takeover of Gaza and the West Bank, including East
Jerusalem, in 1967.<br>
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<div>Now more than 60 years later, the villages have yet to be
recognized by Israel and live under constant threats of demolition
and forcible removal.<br>
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<div>Meanwhile, Israeli Jewish communities in the Negev continuously
expand, with five new Jewish housing plans approved last year.
According to an investigation undertaken by Israeli rights groups
ACRI and Bimkom, two of the approved communities are located in
areas where unrecognized Bedouin villages already exist.</div>
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