Subscribe to Print Edition | Tue., April 01, 2008 Adar2 26, 5768 | | Israel Time: 10:12 (EST+7) web haaretz.com   Back to Homepage Rosner's Domain Diplomacy Defense Jewish World Opinion National Print Edition Advertising Books Arts & Leisure Business Real Estate Easy Start Travel Week's End Anglo File

Bedouin homes in the Negev Desert. (Alberto Dankberg) Last update - 18:52 31/03/2008 Rights group demands gov't stop demolishing Bedouin homes By Reuters Tags: human rights watch, israel  Human Rights Watch on Monday called on the government to stop demolishing Bedouin homes and appoint a commission to look into charges its land and housing policies discriminate against the minority Arab group. The group's 130-page report examines the impact of Israel's land policies in the Negev desert region on tens of thousands of Bedouin, once desert nomads, who now live in informal shanty towns that are not recognized as legal villages. The report says Israel stops Bedouin from building legally by refusing to recognize their settlements, and frequently demolishes existing homes. At the same time, the state is building new homes in the Negev region for Jewish families. Advertisement "Israel is willing and able to build new Negev towns for Jewish Israelis seeking a rural way of life, but not for the people who have lived and worked this land for generations," HRW Middle East Director Joe Stork said. "This is grossly unfair." A Housing Ministry spokesman could not be reached on Monday and a Foreign Ministry spokesman said he could not comment on the report. Israel forced some Bedouin off their ancestral lands and into ramshackle villages in the 1950s to make way for military bases while others have lived in their villages for generations, HRW said. Neither type of community was formally recognized. Israel argues Bedouin homes in informal shantytowns can be demolished because they have no permits and says Bedouin families can move to government-planned townships, which HRW says are crime-ridden, poor and overcrowded. HRW called for a moratorium on Bedouin house demolitions and said an independent commission should look into the problem of the unrecognized villages and into what it called discriminatory land and housing policies. Israel had demolished thousands of Negev Bedouin homes since the 1970s and more than 200 in 2007, often leaving families with nothing more than a tent, the group said. HRW said the government was turning a blind eye to unlawful construction by Jewish citizens and was unfairly spending money on homes for Jewish families. Applicants for new homes and communities in the arid Negev region are screened, and Bedouin systematically excluded, the report said. About 170,000 Bedouin Arabs live in Israel, according to the Foreign Ministry Web site. The majority of them live in the Negev. Related articles: ILA destroys Bedouin homes to make way for Jewish town More than 800 protest Bedouin house demolitions in front of Knesset Supreme Court set to discuss connecting unrecognized Bedouin towns to water Court rejects Bedouin villages' request for clean water connection Bookmark to del.icio.us   The gift of dignity T.A. charity provides female drug addicts with shower, meal and counseling. Sign of life Hamas leader says Gilad Shalit is still alive after two years in captivity.   1.   It Worked for Apartheid South Africa - For a while.. 19:07  |  gearoid 31/03/08   2.   Most of Negev Bedu are illegal residents infiltrating from Egypt 19:11  |  Absolute Sweden 31/03/08   3.   THOUSANDS of Jews Maimed & MURDERED for WICKED LIE of Occupation 20:20  |  Linda Rivera 31/03/08   4.   Jew-HATERS WICKEDLY Ignore Justice for One Million JEWISH REFUGEE 20:22  |  Linda Rivera 31/03/08   5.   100,000 arab illegal homes exist in E.Jerusalem 20:40  |  sam 31/03/08   6.   Rights Group: Palis Must Stop Terrorism 23:12  |  Steve 31/03/08   7.   Human lefts groups not rights groups 01:19  |  Dennie 01/04/08   8.   Try building unauthorized towns in any modern 01:41  |  RS 01/04/08   9.   #8 Try running a discriminatory building scheme, RS 03:55  |  Johnboy 01/04/08   10.   why can`t israel get it right? 05:09  |  Mike 01/04/08   11.   apartheid 08:57  |  Deborah 01/04/08

Today Online Jerusalem council okays 600 new Jewish homes in Arab area Responses: 263 Yishai: Israel must negotiate with Hamas over Shalit release Responses: 151 Editorial: Peace talks, even on Jerusalem, must be secret Responses: 62 MK Swaid: Demolition of Arab homes will lead to an explosion Responses: 70 Rosner's Domain New Guest: Rabbis who don't officiate intermarriage should refer to rabbis who do Poll: What percentage of Jews will vote McCain? 38% for pressuring Palestinians, 25% for pressuring Israel (WTR) Can McCain get a boost from the new dovish Jewish lobby? More Headlines 05:38 Russia's UN envoy: Moscow summit would energize peace process 07:31 Hamas: IDF special forces kill two militants in Gaza raid 10:08 Barak heeds Rice call, reverses course to back PA border plan 09:58 Carcinogenic materials found in 2 additional F-16I fighter jets 05:50 Hamas TV puppet 'kills' Bush as revenge for U.S., Israeli actions 05:56 Vatican looks to assuage Jews' anger over controversial prayer 10:06 U.K. archives shed light on female spy who led anti-Nazi resistance 05:53 PMO to bear financial cost of Israel Radio's Farsi broadcasts 03:57 Coming soon - kosher financial instruments 04:16 Palestinians approve $3.337 billion draft budget for 2008 04:42 Restless Druze employ boycotts, arson to combat cellular antennas 04:52 Court extends remand of Ramle couple suspected of abusing their eight children 05:00 How did the bee cross the road? Via a bee bridge, of course Previous Editions Select Day 31 mar 30 mar 28 mar 27 mar 26 mar 25 mar 24 mar 23 mar 21 mar 20 mar 19 mar 18 mar

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