While the Arab sector claims discrimination between the Jewish and Arab communities, the data in the Galilee region show that the state actually works in the opposite way.
In the last 15 years, there has been a significant decline in the proportion of Jews in the Galilee, compared to a significant increase in the proportion of Arab residents.
The reason: Actions taken by the governmental planning institutions enable the marketing of state lands to the Arab sector at very low prices, while in the nearby Jewish settlements the cost of land is high and without subsidies from the state, and the settlements do not even receive additional areas for expansion.
The Lev HaGalil area is demarcated between highway 85 in the north and highways 77 and 79 in the south, and highway 65 in the east and highway 70 in the west.
Within its scope are cities such as Tamra, Shafaram, Araba and Sakhnin.
On the other hand, there are no Jewish cities and there are only a few dozen watchtowers built in the 1980s.
"Only Arab villages are being planned."
Arab construction in the Galilee,
In the last 15 years there has been a demographic change, and the Jews, who made up 25% of the residents of the area, now make up only 14%.
The reason, they say in the Shiloh forum, is that "the State of Israel subsidizes land for the housing of minorities, and on the other hand charges the full price from the Jewish settlers."
Since 2005, the number of Jews in the area has increased by 1,200 residents and now stands at approximately 98,000 residents, while the number of Arab residents in the area has increased from 441,000 residents to 576,000.
Major General (Res.) Eyal Ben Reuven, a member of the Galilee Security Forum and a resident of Yodfat, explains: "This reality has a security significance. If the state does not take care of strengthening the Jewish settlement by another million residents, we will degenerate into a security reality that the 'Guardian of the Walls' was just its promo. We will reach a situation where we will need tanks to open axes."
reduction and expansion
In the Jewish settlements, settlement is conditioned by acceptance committees, but in settlements with an urban character, it is clearly visible how the proportion of Arab residents has increased.
In Nof HaGalil and Karmiel, about 10% of the residents are already Arabs, and in Kfar Varadim, a demographic change has also been seen in recent years.
According to an estimate, about half of the houses that are offered for sale in the settlement are sold to the Arabs of the area, and the number of non-Jewish families already makes up close to 10% of the population.
Danny Ivri, head of the Meshgav Council, and lawyer Benzi Lieberman from the Shiloh Forum, photo: Eyal Margolin/Gini
The Shiloh Forum, which accompanies the residents of Lev HaGalil, says that the actions of the planning authorities, the Ministry of Housing and the Israel Land Authority in the last two decades, contribute to the reduction of Jewish settlement and the expansion of Arab settlement.
Dr. Anat Roth, CEO of Shila Forum, warns: "The demographic reality in the heart of the Galilee today is the same as it was here 75 years ago, when the partition plan determined that this strip of land would be part of the Arab state. If the State of Israel does not strengthen the settlement here immediately, The heart of the Galilee will become the Israeli Donbas region."
The head of the Meshgav council, Dani Ivri, faces the problems frequently: in his council there are 29 Jewish settlements that inhabit only 17 thousand dunams.
His request to receive an additional 7,000 dunams was refused.
The Meshgav Council area is spread over 164 thousand dunams.
Recently, 22 thousand dunams were taken from it in order to expand Arab settlements.
On top of that, the prices paid by residents of Mashgav Council are sky high compared to their Arab neighbors.
While the state markets land at a cost of 1.15 million shekels in the settlement of Gilon and 1.1 million shekels in Kornit, the neighbors in She'ab are required to pay only 50 thousand shekels for half a dunam of land owned by the Israel Lands Administration.
In Shafram, a similar piece of land was sold for NIS 74,000.
Head of Meshgav Council, Dani Evri, photo: Ariel Kahana
"I have 6,000 people from Mashgav who are ready to build houses, just give them land. But they are being evicted from here only for the real estate data of the Israel Land Administration.
The rural area was given up.
There is no such thing in the planning authorities as a Jewish village, only an Arab village.
There is no natural reproduction in a Jewish settlement, why do the Arabs have it?
I am in favor of giving it to the Arabs, but also giving it to the Jews.
"Let us continue to grow. The Arabs received 70,000 dunams in recent years. I want 7,000 dunams, but they don't give me anything. Until the ministers intervene, the planning bodies won't give us anything."
were we wrong
We will fix it!
If you found an error in the article, we would appreciate it if you shared it with us
