On the occasion of International Human Rights Day 2025, Negev Coexistence Forum for Civil Equality (NCFCE) has issued its annual report: “Human Rights in the Negev: Challenges and Pathways to Equality for the Bedouin Minority – Annual Review 2025.”
This report provides a focused overview of developments and human rights violations affecting the Palestinian Bedouin population in the Naqab throughout the year 2025. It documents urgent trends, including:
- Ongoing home demolitions and forced displacement
- Planning discrimination and a lack of village recognition
- Increasing food insecurity among Bedouin families
- Inadequate civil protection during armed conflict
- Severe poverty and infrastructural neglect
- Gender inequality and shrinking civic space
Drawing from field data, testimonies, and international law, the report outlines practical, rights-based policy recommendations to promote equality, protect Indigenous rights, and rebuild trust.
In the Naqab region of Palestine, annexed by Israel in 1948, over 300,000 Palestinian Arab Bedouin continue to experience widespread human rights violations, especially related to housing, education, health, gender equality, and basic civil infrastructure. As citizens of the State of Israel, they are systematically denied equal access to services, recognition, and representation. Their struggles highlight broader questions of minority rights, equality, and social cohesion in Israel. This report outlines key human rights challenges, the impact on social cohesion and intercommunal trust, and proposes constructive policy solutions grounded in international human rights law, Israeli constitutional principles, and the values of partnership and reconciliation.
Among the key human rights challenges the Palestinian Bedouin community faces in the Naqab are:
Home demolitions have continued to intensify sharply in 2025, continuing a trend over the last several years that disproportionately targets Bedouin citizens. According to official data, demolition enforcement in the southern region reached new records in 2024 with 5,231 structures demolished—an increase of 58% compared to 2023—and over 2,431 demolition orders executed on the ground. In the first half of 2025 alone, demolition orders increased by a further 43.7%, signaling an aggressive acceleration of this policy1. Entire communities continue to live under the threat of displacement. The village of as-Sirr was partially demolished in May 2025 and almost entirely in September, despite community resistance 1 (Hebrew) 2 and appeals, leaving families living in tents. Other villages, including Ghazal-Aba, have received evacuation and demolition orders, which are expected to be carried out within 90 days (or by a specific date). Despite temporary halts in demolition enforcement during the October 2023 war, the Ministry of National Security praised the record number of enforced demolitions in 2024 and 2025. However, these demolitions routinely target citizens who have no access to legal planning frameworks.
Many homes are “self-demolished” by their owners to avoid harsh fines and police violence, resulting in traumatic displacement without support. This pattern violates Article 11(1) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), which guarantees the right to adequate housing. It breaches international standards against forced eviction and collective punishment.
Planning Discrimination and Lack of Recognition
The root cause of the demolition crisis lies in systemic planning discrimination. Thirty-five Bedouin villages remain “unrecognized” and are excluded from national and regional master plans, including TAMA 352. Residents cannot obtain permits or access planning services, effectively criminalizing their presence on ancestral lands. Even recognized towns suffer from severe neglect in planning. Towns such as Lakiya, Hura, and Tel Sheva face overcrowding, poor infrastructure, and slow approval of new neighborhoods. Planning mechanisms prioritize Jewish settlements, often placing industrial zones, waste facilities, or new police stations near Bedouin towns, compounding environmental and psychological stress3. Despite years of advocacy, there is no transparent, accessible pathway for recognition or fair planning. Proposals for “regulation” often require residents to abandon their land rights and relocate to unsustainable urban centers. This violates Article 2(2) of the ICESCR (right to non-discrimination) and Article 5(e)(iii) of the ICERD (housing rights without discrimination).
This publication is useful to diplomats, UN bodies, civil society actors, researchers and policymakers engaged in promoting minority rights, conflict prevention, and equitable development in Israel and the region.
For more information, contact: intl.advocacy@dukium.org
Photo: Unrecognized village in the Naqab, with Bi’r Sabi` city in the background. Source: NCFCE.
