Negev Bedouin

Negev Bedouin
بدو النقب
הבדואים בנגב‎

Bedouin men at a party
Total population
Over 200,000
Regions with significant populations
Israel	200,000–210,000[1][2][3]
Languages
Native language: Arabic (mainly Bedouin dialect, also Egyptian, Secondary language : Hebrew (Modern Israeli)
Religion
Islam
Related ethnic groups
Other Bedouin

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The Negev Bedouin (Arabic: بدو النقب, Badū an-Naqab; Hebrew: הבדואים בנגב‎, HaBedu'im BaNegev) are traditionally pastoral nomadic Arab tribes (Bedouin), who until the later part of the 19th century would wander between Hijaz in the east and the Sinai Peninsula in the west.^[4] Today they live in the Negev region of Israel. The Bedouin tribes adhere to Islam and many are loyal Israeli citizens.^[5][6][7][8] Some Bedouins voluntarily serve in the IDF.^[9][10]

From 1858 during Ottoman rule, the Negev Bedouin underwent a process of sedentarization which accelerated after the founding of Israel.^[11] In the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, most resettled in neighbouring countries. With time, some started returning to Israel and about 11,000 were recognized by Israel as its citizens by 1954.^[12] Between 1968 and 1989, Israel built seven townships in the northeast Negev for this population, including Rahat, Hura, Tel as-Sabi, Ar'arat an-Naqab, Lakiya, Kuseife and Shaqib al-Salam.^[13]

Others settled outside these townships in what is called the unrecognized villages. In 2003, in an attempt to settle the land disputes in the Negev, the Israeli government offered to retroactively recognize eleven villages (Abu Qrenat, Umm Batin, al-Sayyid, Bir Hadaj, Drijat, Mulada, Makhul, Qasr al-Sir, Kukhleh, Abu Talul and Tirabin al-Sana), but also increased enforcement against "illegal construction". Bedouin land owners refused to accept the offer and the land disputes still stood.^[14] The majority of the unrecognized villages were therefore slated for bulldozing^[15][16] under the Prawer Plan, which would have disposessed 30,000-40,000 Bedouins.^[17] After large protests by Bedouins and severe criticism from human rights organizations, the Prawer plan was rescinded in December 2013.^[17][18]

The Bedouin population in the Negev numbers 200,000–210,000. Just over half of them live in the seven government-built Bedouin-only towns; the remaining 90,000 live in 46 villages – 35 of which are still unrecognized and 11 of which were officially recognized in 2003.^[2][15]