Israel demolishes al-Araqib village for 209th time

By Abdelraouf Arnaout

JERUSALEM (AA) – Israeli army forces on Monday demolished a Palestinian Bedouin village in the southern Negev region, according to a local official.

Israeli forces raided the village of al-Araqib and razed all homes inside for the 209th time, Aziz al-Touri, a member of the Local Committee for the Defense of al-Araqib, told Anadolu Agency.

He said villagers “are resolved to rebuild their destroyed dwellings and structures again.”

Inhabited by 22 Palestinian families, homes in al-Araqib are built of wood, plastic, and corrugated iron.

Last month, Israeli forces demolished the village but villagers managed to rebuild it again.

The village was first destroyed in 2010 but was rebuilt after every demolition ever since.

Israeli authorities claim that the site where it is located falls under "state land."

Zochrot, a Tel Aviv-based NGO, said in a recent report that al-Araqib village was first built during the Ottoman period and its lands were purchased by residents.

Israeli authorities seek to seize control of the lands and expel its residents, with dozens of villages and Bedouin communities facing the same threat in the Negev area, according to Zochrot.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar