Head of the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) David Zini warned during a Political-Security Cabinet meeting on Monday of unprecedented terrorist organization efforts in Bedouin communities in the Negev.
In his remarks to cabinet members, the head of the service detailed that the defense establishment often identifies attempts to create infrastructure of a military nature inside Israeli territory. “There are places in the Bedouin diaspora with military infrastructure that we are constantly thwarting, attempts to establish quasi-military battalions; this is a very concerning phenomenon,” he said.
The warning comes against the backdrop of increasing involvement of Israeli citizens from Bedouin communities in terrorist incidents, in arms smuggling along the Egyptian border, and in ties with terrorist elements in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Shin Bet and Police officials have identified that the spillover of illegal weapons on a massive scale into the Negev, alongside processes of nationalist and religious radicalization, has created fertile ground for the rise of local armed organizations.
Officials from the defense establishment pointed to several key trends fueling the phenomenon: Weapons smuggling has turned the Negev into a procurement hub for standard-issue weaponry, including assault rifles, standard explosive devices, and night-vision gear.
In addition, the line between criminal and nationalist activity is blurring: infrastructures that began as criminal organizations and protection-racket operations are undergoing radicalization processes and turning their weapons toward attempted terror attacks.
‘Right under your noses, armed militias capable of slaughtering Israeli citizens’
Hamas and ISIS propaganda on social media has led youth from the Bedouin communities to establish local cells and attempt to emulate operational patterns of terrorist organizations in the West Bank.
Targeted counterterrorism efforts by the Shin Bet, Police, and the IDF in Bedouin communities continue, including nighttime arrests, weapons seizures, and the use of advanced intelligence tools to cut short attempts to establish these “battalions” while still in their initial organizational phases.
On Monday, during a conference held in Rahat with the participation of retired Major General Yoav Segalovitz, former Deputy Minister of Public Security and second on the Ra’am list, bursts of gunfire were heard nearby as part of an intra-clan conflict in the city.
“During the meeting, bursts of gunfire were heard right next to us, in the early evening hours. The inconceivable thing is that here in the city, this has almost become routine. Just yesterday, bursts of gunfire were heard for eight consecutive hours,” Segalovitz said, adding: “Such a thing must not become routine. This is a severe failure of the government, which has abandoned the personal safety of its citizens.”
The Amcha Yisrael party, led by Ofer Winter, responded to Zini’s warning that “the report regarding the Shin Bet chief’s warning about attempts to establish military battalions in the Bedouin diaspora is supposed to serve as a flashing red flag for the Government of Israel and the defense establishment.” Winter further added, “Where is the Prime Minister? Where is the Minister of Police?”
Winter continued his attack, stating, “Right under your noses, armed militias capable of slaughtering Israeli citizens are being formed. What are you doing about it? The stinging failure to confiscate weapons in the Arab sector will blow up in our faces. No misconceptions and no excuses. The time for decisive resolution has come. The time for Winter has come,” he urged.
Bedouin leaders respond to Zini’s comments
The head of the Hura Local Council, Habes Al-Atawna, responded to Zini’s comments, telling Walla that “there is no such thing among us. Even the timing, twenty days before the elections, is very strange. This is a democratic election campaign, and the timing of making such statements is because of the elections. Most Bedouins are law-abiding people to the law, and contribute to the state. There is criminality among a small minority, but this is under no circumstances terrorism. That small percentage has been neglected for decades.”
Ahmad, a resident of Rahat, expressed outrage over the Shin Bet chief’s statement.
“Unfortunately, the heads of the defense establishments are also not helping to calm tensions or halt the incitement against the Bedouins. We have always pleaded for the phenomenon of illegal weapons in Arab society in general, and among the Bedouins in particular, to be combated, with no response. The Bedouins in the Negev are waiting to receive recognition for their villages and treatment of their problems so they can live in dignity like human beings. If it turns out that there is any criminal or nationalist organizing, we all condemn and oppose it.”
The Regional Council of Unrecognized Villages also reacted to the Shin Bet chief’s words, claiming they stem from political considerations.
“The entire country already knows that Zini has turned the Shin Bet into a branch of Likud, with all the accompanying lies. These headlines were not drafted in the Shin Bet offices, but in the office of Yonatan Urich, and they are completely fabricated from A to Z. A total spin whose sole purpose is to add a few votes of Arab-haters to the coalition of disasters. We view this unprecedented incitement with utmost severity.”
Ra’ed Al-Qian, a resident of Hura and a social activist, said they have been sounding alarms for years regarding illegal weapons, gunfire, and violence in Bedouin society. “We have repeatedly pointed out the scale of the phenomenon and the heavy price in human lives, but the governmental response was inadequate. Over the past decade, many Bedouin citizens have paid with their lives, so this cannot be viewed merely as an issue of policing and enforcement,” he said.
“The fight against violence requires deep, cross-systemic intervention. Alongside resolute enforcement, what is needed is education, employment and vocational training, urban planning and housing, infrastructure and public services, leisure and sports frameworks, and opportunities for youth,” Al-Qian said.
He added that “when planning and housing solutions have been lacking for years, and instead families are primarily met with enforcement against unpermitted construction, one must also examine the link between planning policy and social reality.
“The question is not just how many weapons were seized and how many suspects were arrested, but what is being done today so that in five years there will be fewer weapons and less violence, and more education, employment, personal safety, and hope,” he concluded.
