While I was in Israel last month I was given a tour of the Negev by Regavim, an NGO that concentrates on the legal use of land in Israel.
A major concern is how the Bedouin have been illegally building villages throughout the entire Negev. This is not a small problem - it is an epidemic.
The problem is not all the Bedouins' fault, either. Regavim is very sympathetic to how badly they were treated by Israel in the decades following 1948. But if nothing is done now, the problem will only get worse.
Israel has tried to deal with the issue by giving them land, but as this video shows, that has not worked. The Bedouin are recklessly ignoring Israeli law and building wherever they want. These are not ancient villages but scattershot buildings all being built today on stolen land - on literally thousands of settlements.
What is also clear is that the people who say that Israel must simply make these buildings legal have no idea what they are talking about. No responsible state should cave in to what is simply theft. And many of these buildings start as mere shacks, but when nothing is done they become more permanent with cinder blocks and eventually fully functional housing.
But Israel does have to offer an alternative, and that will cost serious money.
The current state cannot continue.
Hopefully, this video will illustrate the problem a little better.
