Israeli military forces demolish Araqeeb Village once again

Israeli military forces have demolished the Bedouin village of Araqeeb in the Negev region of southern Israel yet again as the Tel Aviv regime is pressing ahead with its land grab policies.

Israeli bulldozers entered the community, located eight kilometers north of Beersheba, on Friday and leveled the structures built in the area.

Israeli bulldozers, escorted by groups of Israeli soldiers, have frequently raided Araqeeb and detained several Bedouins.

The first demolition of al-Araqeeb took place on June 27, 2010, and the village has been demolished more than 100 times ever since.

Rights groups argue that the demolition of al-Araqeeb and other Bedouin villages is an attempt by the Israeli regime to uproot indigenous Palestinians from the Negev region and confiscate more land for the expansion of illegal settlements.

Meanwhile, the Peace Now group has said the construction of illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank has increased by four times since September 2015.

The Israeli anti-settlement group said that plans to construct 2,168 new housing units moved forward over the last Jewish year, compared to 553 ones the year before.

Moreover, 1,170 housing units previously built without permits received retroactive approval, compared to 444 during the previous year.

On September 27, an Israeli authority approved a plan to build 98 new settler units in the illegal Shiloh settlement, located 45 kilometers (28 miles) north of Jerusalem al-Quds.

Over half a million Israelis live in more than 230 illegal settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem al-Quds.

All Israeli settlements are illegal under international law. Tel Aviv has defied international calls to stop the settlements expansion in the occupied Palestinian territories.

Israel’s settlement expansion has been among the main reasons behind the collapse of the last round of the so-called Middle East peace talks in 2014.

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