prime minister Netanyahu on a tour of the Western Negev: “We are coming to return the Negev to the State of Israel. This means settlement on an unprecedented scale, but first and foremost – restoring law and order.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu conducted an extensive tour of the Western Negev today, accompanied by Defense Minister Israel Katz, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, and the directors-general of government ministries – Acting Director-General of the Prime Minister’s Office, Director-General of the National Security Ministry, Director-General of the Ministry of Settlement and National Missions, Director-General of the Ministry of the Negev and Galilee, and Director-General of the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs. This tour is part of a multidisciplinary national effort that includes strengthening and developing the region, completing strategic responses in the area, and combating crime in the Arab community.
At the beginning of the tour, the Prime Minister, the Defense Minister, and the National Security Minister visited the community of Revivim, where they observed Bir al-Daj and received a briefing from Police Commissioner Rananitz Danny Levi, Shin Bet head David Zini, and Deputy Chief of Staff Major General Tamir Yadai on the Israel Police’s handling and enforcement against smuggling and illegal weapons possession in the South. Subsequently, they were shown seized weapons and information on significant smuggling operations thwarted by police forces in the area and on the borders.
Afterward, the Prime Minister, accompanied by the Defense Minister, visited the ‘Desert Man’ farm near the community of Kmehin. The Prime Minister received a briefing from the Acting Director-General of the Prime Minister’s Office, the Director-General of the Ministry of Settlement, the Director-General of the Ministry of the Negev and Galilee, and the head of the Ramat Negev Regional Council. They presented the progress of the government’s five-year plan, being formulated with the Ministry of Defense, for demographic growth and massive settlement expansion along the eastern and western borders, with an emphasis on developing Nitzana, as part of the region’s challenges and the required civilian responses, and on settlement in the Negev as part of the border strengthening plan.
The tour focused on a large-scale national plan promoted by the Prime Minister’s Office, which includes: strengthening the state’s hold on the territory, advancing plans for settlement expansion and increasing demographic growth, developing new employment areas, improving civilian infrastructure, and providing responses to the security needs of residents. The plan is based on inter-ministerial staff work to strengthen the borders and build the multi-dimensional national plan for the Negev.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu:
“I am here with the National Security Minister and the Defense Minister, along with the Police Commissioner, the Deputy Chief of Staff, the Shin Bet head, and representatives of government ministries, for one purpose – we are coming to return the Negev to the State of Israel.
This means settlement on a scale we have not known, and it means regulation for the Bedouin residents as well. But it means, first and foremost – restoring law and order. The Negev is out of control. We will rein it in, and an important operation by the Israel Police, in conjunction with other forces, has begun. To rein it in, we need to understand that the criminal threat and the security threat are merging.
With tens of thousands of weapons, with drones crossing borders, and other threats.
Therefore, we will bring a national project to achieve all these goals, but first and foremost – to restore governance to the Negev. I thank the ministers, I thank the Police Commissioner, and I also thank the Shin Bet head. I thank you, Mr. Defense Minister and Deputy Chief of Staff, for undertaking this mission. We will succeed here, just as we have succeeded in all other endeavors we have taken upon ourselves.
A top national mission, my first visit as Prime Minister for this purpose, the first of many.”
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir:
“Operation ‘New Order,’ which we are currently leading to restore governance to the Negev, is the first of its kind after decades of neglect, during which the Negev was abandoned and became an ‘ex-territory’ where a monster of nationalist and criminal crime grew. Despite the efforts of criminal elements to try and deter us, we will not flinch: we will continue the operation throughout the Negev as needed, with the aim of restoring security to the residents.
I thank the Prime Minister for his support, the Shin Bet head for his commitment to assist the police in the operation, and of course – the Police Commissioner, the Southern District Commander, and all our wonderful fighters and police officers who are taking part in this operation with dedication and courage. Our message is one: the State of Israel is the owner of the Negev, and anyone who challenges this will be dealt with to the fullest extent of the law.”
Defense Minister Israel Katz:
“Stopping the smuggling of weapons across the Israel-Egypt border is a top security interest of the State of Israel. The drones used for smuggling are intended to arm our enemies and are acts of terrorism in every sense, and a direct part of the campaign against the security of Israeli citizens – therefore, we have instructed the IDF to act decisively, to change the rules of the game, and to create clear deterrence.
Strengthening settlement in the Negev is strengthening the security of the State of Israel, strengthening sovereignty, and strengthening our hold on the territory. Settling the Negev is a top strategic defense line for the country’s borders and for the civilian home front. I commend Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who, just as US President Trump fought the drug threat – he is leading a determined war against crime in the Negev and the threat to national security. The State of Israel will act with a heavy hand against any element, from within and from without, that tries to undermine our security.”
– Video: Omer Miron/GPO.
Related Topics
