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Israeli Minister Sets Out Plan to ‘Judaize’ Arab Population Centers

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich speaks at a news conference in Jerusalem, Israel, January 8, 2023. (Reuters)
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich speaks at a news conference in Jerusalem, Israel, January 8, 2023. (Reuters)
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Israeli Minister Sets Out Plan to ‘Judaize’ Arab Population Centers

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich speaks at a news conference in Jerusalem, Israel, January 8, 2023. (Reuters)
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich speaks at a news conference in Jerusalem, Israel, January 8, 2023. (Reuters)

Israel's far-right finance minister on Thursday laid out his party's plan to dramatically increase the number of Jews living in two areas of the country with large Arab-Israeli populations.

With elections approaching, Bezalel Smotrich said the plan would emulate what he termed the "revolution" in the occupied West Bank, where the construction of Israeli settlements has soared in recent years.

"Today I present to you the Religious Zionism's plan for the Judaization of the Negev and Galilee: the revolution we carried out in Judea and Samaria -- we will carry out in the Negev and Galilee, and on a massive scale," he wrote on X, using the Biblical name for the West Bank.

His party posted an AI-generated video on X showing two Arab men shouting and crying about the proposed plan.

The Negev, in the south of Israel, and the Galilee, in the north, are regions with large Arab-Israeli populations.

Most of Israel's Arab minority identify as Palestinian and either remained or are the descendants of those who remained in what is now Israel after its creation in 1948. They represent about 21 percent of the country's 10.2 million people.

Smotrich said the goal was "one million additional Jews in the Negev and Galilee, 40 new communities, dozens of farms, expansion of existing communities, and hundreds of thousands of housing units."

"We will cancel the reckless plans in Arab communities, which have taken over land reserves and threaten Jewish settlement in the area," he added.

Smotrich vowed the establishment of industrial and employment zones and said his party would demand the next government "remove barriers and place Zionist professionals in key positions".

Israel is heading towards tight elections to be held on October 27, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu facing an uphill battle.

According to current polling, Smotrich's party, which is a member of Netanyahu's coalition, is just on the cusp of reaching the electoral threshold needed to enter the next parliament.

Israel has since 1967 occupied the West Bank, where more than 500,000 Israelis live in settlements which are illegal under international law. The territory is home to about three million Palestinians.

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Arab World

UN Experts Urge Israel to Protect West Bank Olive Farmers

Palestinian volunteers douse an olive tree set on fire by Israeli settlers, near the village of Turmus Ayya, north of Ramallah, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on October 16, 2026. Ahmad Gharabli, AFP
Palestinian volunteers douse an olive tree set on fire by Israeli settlers, near the village of Turmus Ayya, north of Ramallah, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on October 16, 2026. Ahmad Gharabli, AFP
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UN Experts Urge Israel to Protect West Bank Olive Farmers

Palestinian volunteers douse an olive tree set on fire by Israeli settlers, near the village of Turmus Ayya, north of Ramallah, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on October 16, 2026. Ahmad Gharabli, AFP
Palestinian volunteers douse an olive tree set on fire by Israeli settlers, near the village of Turmus Ayya, north of Ramallah, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on October 16, 2026. Ahmad Gharabli, AFP

UN rights experts on Monday called on Israel to protect Palestinian farmers in the West Bank as settler attacks worsen with the annual olive harvest.

"Palestinian farmers must be protected and able to access their land safely. Yet, year after year, the violence, destruction and restrictions intensify," the experts said in a statement.

"The olive harvest should be a time when farmers can enjoy, in safety and dignity, the food and livelihoods their nature and land provide, not another season of fear, loss, violence and destruction."

The experts urged Israel to ensure that its forces protect Palestinian farmers from settler attacks and refrain from interference with their access to land. They also urged the international community to "exercise maximum pressure to protect Palestinian civilians", reported AFP.

Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967. About 500,000 Israelis live in the West Bank, alongside three million Palestinians.

Violence is surging in the territory ahead of Israel's bitterly fought October 27 elections. The vote coincides with Palestinians' annual olive harvest which has been repeatedly disrupted by Israeli settlers as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seeks to shore up his pro-settlement right-wing base.

According to the UN humanitarian agency OCHA, 178 settler attacks related to the 2025 olive harvest were recorded in the West Bank, affecting 88 Palestinian communities.

More than 6,000 trees and saplings were "vandalised", it said -- nearly double the number in 2024 and the highest figure in six years.

"The olive harvest is an essential source of food, income and livelihood for thousands of Palestinian families," the UN experts said.

"Olive trees take years to mature and can sustain families for generations. Their destruction deprives families of far more than a single harvest: it undermines local food systems, cultural practices and ways of life, as well as the right to food and the food sovereignty of Palestinian communities."

The seven signatories to the statement include Sofia Monsalve Suarez, special rapporteur on the right to food; and Francesca Albanese, special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories.

The special rapporteurs are independent experts mandated by the Human Rights Council. They do not speak for the United Nations itself.

Arab World

UK Urges Firms Not to Take Part in E1 Settlement Tender or Risk Sanctions

Israeli settlers (foreground) harvesting olives confront a Palestinian family outside the settlement of Alei Zahav, near the Palestinian town of Kafr al-Dik in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, on October 13, 2026. (AFP)
Israeli settlers (foreground) harvesting olives confront a Palestinian family outside the settlement of Alei Zahav, near the Palestinian town of Kafr al-Dik in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, on October 13, 2026. (AFP)
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UK Urges Firms Not to Take Part in E1 Settlement Tender or Risk Sanctions

Israeli settlers (foreground) harvesting olives confront a Palestinian family outside the settlement of Alei Zahav, near the Palestinian town of Kafr al-Dik in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, on October 13, 2026. (AFP)
Israeli settlers (foreground) harvesting olives confront a Palestinian family outside the settlement of Alei Zahav, near the Palestinian town of Kafr al-Dik in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, on October 13, 2026. (AFP)

British foreign minister Ed Miliband on Monday urged companies and individuals not to proceed with bids for the E1 West Bank settlement project on Monday, warning those involved in the ‌construction of ‌illegal settlements could face ‌sanctions.

"We ⁠urge businesses and ⁠individuals not to proceed with bids for E1 construction tenders," Miliband said in a statement. "They should be ⁠aware of legal ‌and ‌reputational consequences, including the risk ‌of involving themselves in ‌serious breaches of international law."

The E1 project would bisect the Israeli-occupied West Bank and ‌cut it off from East Jerusalem, fragmenting ⁠the ⁠land Palestinians hope will form the heart of a state.

Many Western states and campaign groups have opposed the project over concerns that it could undermine a future peace deal with the Palestinians.

Arab World

Syrian State Media: Armed Groups Ban UN Delegation from Entering Sweida

Members of the National Guard affiliated with Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri in Sweida (File photo: Sweida 24). 
Members of the National Guard affiliated with Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri in Sweida (File photo: Sweida 24). 
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Syrian State Media: Armed Groups Ban UN Delegation from Entering Sweida

Members of the National Guard affiliated with Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri in Sweida (File photo: Sweida 24). 
Members of the National Guard affiliated with Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri in Sweida (File photo: Sweida 24). 

Groups described by Syrian state media as operating outside the law prevented a joint UN humanitarian delegation from entering the southern Syrian city of Sweida on Sunday, citing a lack of coordination with them, according to Syria’s Al-Ikhbariya television channel.

The delegation included representatives of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and international organizations. Its visit had been coordinated with the Sweida branch of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, whose team was expected to accompany the delegation on field visits to Sweida city, Shahba and the village of Ara.

Al-Ikhbariya reported that the groups stopped the delegation at the Umm al-Zeitoun checkpoint for two to three hours before informing its members that entry was prohibited.

The delegation had earlier passed through the Al-Matouna checkpoint, operated by the Sweida Security Directorate.

The broadcaster also recalled that groups affiliated with Druze spiritual leader Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri had blocked commercial trucks carrying essential goods and fuel from entering Sweida province on September 10.

According to Al-Ikhbariya’s correspondent at the time, the restrictions on commercial convoys coincided with the groups preventing approximately 12,000 students from reaching examination centers to sit special make-up exams for students in Sweida.