Crime, protection rackets, polygamy, incursions into military zones, threats to IDF bases and growing identification with Palestinians in the West Bank are some of the dangers State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman warned of in a sharply critical report published Tuesday on governance in the Negev, focusing on criminal and ideological processes in Bedouin society.
He stressed that the situation has become worse since the previous report on the issue was published five years ago, and found that a lack of cooperation among state authorities is causing ongoing harm to governance.
On the issue of protection money, the comptroller wrote that “contractors are forced to pay huge sums for ‘security’ that does not actually exist — and suffer extortion through threats and theft of equipment and inventory from construction sites ... they are afraid to file complaints.”
Englman noted that the phenomenon also appeared in the previous audit, but the flaw was not corrected. However, he stressed that it is a nationwide problem: A survey conducted in February 2025 by the Tel Aviv and Central District Contractors and Builders Association found that 87% of contractors and developers had been asked to pay protection money at construction sites. Half said projects become more expensive by sums ranging from 250,000 shekels to 1 million shekels, and 75% said they fear filing a complaint.
“The prime minister must address the lack of governance in the Negev — a strategic issue with weighty implications for the State of Israel, in all its characteristics and the serious failures underlying it as described in the report,” Englman wrote. According to him, Benjamin Netanyahu must “act to improve the situation, among other things by leading a multisystem response by many bodies and appointing a state official tasked with coordinating and centralizing their activity.”
According to the report, enforcement actions in certain areas are not taking place, and the Ministerial Committee for the Development of the Negev, the Galilee and National Resilience has not convened at all in the past two years. It noted that a ministerial committee on regulating settlement and economic development of Bedouin society in the Negev, headed by Netanyahu and established in March 2023, dealt only minimally with governance issues and government ministries’ actions on the matter. “As of the end of the audit, February 2025, the issue of lack of governance in the Negev and coordination of government activity on the matter had not been discussed by any ministerial committee,” he wrote.
The next danger: Drone incursions
Englman returned to the issue of incursions into IDF live-fire zones, which was also raised in the previous audit, and noted that the flaw has been only partly addressed.
“There is a phenomenon of incursions into IDF live-fire zones in the Negev region and various types of criminal activity, such as the establishment of greenhouses for growing cannabis and the seizure and cultivation of land without approval,” he wrote in the report. However, it stressed that in the live-fire zones of the National Ground Training Center at Tze’elim, about 1,730 cannabis destruction operations and 1,855 evacuations from live-fire zones were carried out from 2021 to 2023.
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Cannabis field in the Negev
(Photo: Meidad Goren, Society for the Protection of Nature)
During those years, land-turning operations were carried out on 4,498 dunams in the areas of the Planning Directorate and around the Nevatim base, and 43 land evacuation orders were issued. However, against the backdrop of the Swords of Iron War, there was a significant decline in activity from late 2023 and through 2024. At the same time, in 2025 there has been progress in the IDF’s handling of the issue.
Englman recalled that the previous audit had already noted the proximity of the Bedouin population to the Nevatim Air Force base. According to him, tires and stones are thrown onto the access roads leading to the base, and its perimeter electronic fence has been damaged. “The flaw has not been corrected,” the comptroller stressed.
He noted that there are no longer documented cases of stone-throwing at military vehicles on Route 80 or incursions into the base, but other phenomena continue. “Among other things, there has been a substantial increase in shooting incidents near the base and even spillover of gunfire into its territory. In one case, the wing of an aircraft was hit by gunfire,” according to the report.
The report explains that residents of the unrecognized villages can still get very close to the base, “which allows observation of what is happening inside it and could harm information security related to its activity.” Englman mentioned a July 2025 indictment against a resident of the Bedouin diaspora who was in contact with Iranian intelligence elements, including during Operation Rising Lion, and carried out tasks for them such as gathering intelligence on the base and photographing fighter jet takeoffs.
Englman pointed to a new and serious technological danger that has developed since the previous audit and could have strategic consequences: drone incursions into the base.
More violence, fewer police officers
In the report, the comptroller noted the widening gap between the number of police officers at the Segev Shalom and Ar’ara stations in the Negev and their approved staffing levels. As of the end of 2024, the two stations together were short at least 41 officers. A similar shortage was found at the police stations in Rahat and Ayarot, which provide services to many communities in the Negev. “This shortage of police officers could impair operational law enforcement capabilities, the level of service provided to residents and the sense of security among Negev residents,” the report said.
Traffic offenses in the Southern District’s Negev region were also raised in the current audit, and it found that previously identified flaws had not been corrected.
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Comptroller to Prime MInister Benjamin Netanyahu: 'The lack of governance in the Negev must be addressed'
(Photo: Alex Kolomoisky)
“The continued increase in calls to the control center in cases such as road bullying and shooting offenses points to a failure requiring intervention by the Israel Police, the National Security Ministry and the Transportation Ministry,” according to the report.
Another issue addressed by the report is defined as “Palestinization” — an increase in the number of Bedouin residents, including tens of thousands of young people, who maintain a Palestinian affiliation and alienation from Israeliness. Englman explains that the phenomenon stems, among other things, from marriages between men from the Negev and Palestinian women, a large number of illegal residents and the absence of effective monitoring and registration mechanisms at crossings.
“According to the Shin Bet’s assessment, about 22% of the Bedouin population living today in the Negev has a Palestinian affiliation,” the report said. “The absence of an Israeli affiliation, combined with weak governance in the Negev, leads to identification with and involvement in incidents of violence and terrorism against the State of Israel, and according to security officials constitutes a strategic threat to the State of Israel.”
Systematic damage to infrastructure in the Negev
Englman also addressed damage to infrastructure belonging to the Mekorot water company, finding that the flaw raised in the previous audit had not been corrected. “The number of damage incidents that Mekorot faces, on an annual average, remained almost identical: about 103 incidents each year, including cable cutting, theft and arson of transformers,” he wrote.
The Israel Electric Corp. also suffers from extensive damage to infrastructure in the Negev, and there the flaw has worsened since the previous audit. According to the current report: “There were 131 incidents from January 2020 to July 2024, compared with the frequency of incidents in the previous report: 13 incidents from January 2018 to September 2019. The average number of incidents per year faced by the Israel Electric Corp. rose from 7.8 during the previous report period to 29 during the follow-up audit period.”
Regarding infrastructure belonging to the Neve Midbar water corporation, the comptroller found that “there is a serious and widespread phenomenon of residents taking over and illegally building on public areas containing infrastructure, causing intentional and severe damage to the vital systems of the Neve Midbar water corporation.”
According to him, these incidents lead to the collapse of sewage lines, blockages in collector lines, failures in processes at the wastewater treatment plant and severe damage to existing sewage manholes. In addition, illegal construction and damage to water and sewage infrastructure are taking place in the Negev, as well as the dumping of construction waste, household waste and soil — in quantities several meters high above existing sewage lines — harming public health and the environment.
Polygamy not being addressed
Englman found that, since the previous report, there has been an increase in the number of women in polygamous family units. He stressed that polygamy has negative consequences, including economic harm to the family unit, psychological and emotional damage, intra-family struggles, harm to women’s dignity and status, violence against women, harm to children and the creation of at-risk youth. “The main victims of polygamy are women and children,” he wrote. “The follow-up audit found that five years later, the phenomenon continues.”
In line with a recommendation from the previous audit, Section G.16 of the attorney general’s directive on the offense of multiple marriages was amended, stating that false reports to state authorities for the purpose of receiving benefits and privileges should be considered “aggravating circumstances.” But the directive was not enforced regarding offenses committed before the amendment.
Although a polygamy division was established in the Southern District in October 2024, there has been a decline in indictments on the issue since the previous comptroller’s report. “From 2020 to 2024, 113 cases were opened, but the Southern District Prosecutor’s Office (criminal division) filed only three indictments,” it noted.
The comptroller’s follow-up found that the National Insurance Institute pays many families from the Bedouin sector in the Negev significant sums as part of a “dependents supplement to disability benefits,” as a result of applying the term “dependents” to two or more wives as well as to the children of all the wives combined. “This leads to an increase in the benefit by hundreds of percent and reaches significant sums,” he stressed. “National Insurance Institute representatives told the audit team they do not have data on the scope of the phenomenon.”
Englman expressed pessimism regarding the chances of regulating the settlement of the Bedouin diaspora. He noted that this is a population of 70,000 to 90,000 people that is becoming increasingly entrenched outside recognized communities and in illegal structures throughout the Negev.
“The years are passing, and the window of opportunity to regulate the settlement of the diaspora is closing, while at the same time the conflict between this population and the state is deepening as a result of the phenomenon of ‘Palestinization,’” he said. “The prime minister must address this strategic issue, which has weighty implications for the State of Israel, appoint a coordinating government official to formulate a systemic policy to strengthen governance in the Negev and give that official the authority and tools to ensure that government bodies implement it.”
‘The situation is extremely worrying’
The comptroller followed up on findings from the previous report, which stated that in areas where Bedouin society lives, waste is dumped in public spaces and unregulated waste burning takes place, causing significant air pollution. The authorities in temporary and permanent communities, it was noted then, do not handle waste properly.
Englman writes in the report published on Tuesday that: “The follow-up audit found that the flaws discovered in the field of construction waste dumping were not corrected, while in the areas of household waste dumping and waste burning there has been some improvement. The dumping of waste in public areas and its burning in violation of the Cleanliness Law, the dumping of carcasses and the blocking of stream channels continue throughout the Negev and are not enforced as required by the Environmental Protection Ministry and the local authorities.”
The report also addresses fuel dilution at pirate gas stations, noting that the previous audit found that the Tax Authority had no estimate of lost revenue resulting from tax evasion at the pirate stations and was not taking action against them.
“The follow-up audit found that the flaw was corrected only to a limited extent,” the report said. “However, from 2022 to 2024, the Tax Authority increased its activity in this area. Between January 2020 and August 2024, 90 cases were opened in which the lost tax was excise tax, and the tax amount in these cases was 24,988,750 shekels. Cooperation and coordination among all oversight and enforcement bodies in this area is partial.”
In concluding the harsh report, Englman wrote: “The lack of governance harms the deterrence capability of the various enforcement authorities against lawbreakers of all kinds, and affects citizens’ and residents’ sense of personal security and level of trust in state institutions. It also has significant economic implications in the form of unnecessary benefit payments, underpayment of taxes, threats against law-abiding businesses and economic harm to them, drug cultivation and the drug economy.”
He painted a picture of lack of governance across many areas of life in the Negev, enforcement and regulation difficulties and lack of coordination among government ministries: “The report shows that several government ministries, as well as other government bodies, are working to help solve the governance problem in the Negev, but they are struggling to do so. It emerged that there is a lack of coordination and integration of government actions, and coordination among ministries must be improved.”
The comptroller stressed that intervention by the Prime Minister’s Office is required. “It must ensure that the coordinating official has the appropriate authorities, see to the preparation of a multiyear national plan with measurable goals for monitoring and addressing the governance problem in the Negev, and ensure greater national attention and focus by all relevant bodies on this serious phenomenon," his report stated. "The comprehensive follow-up report reveals an extremely worrying picture. Most of the flaws raised in the previous report were not corrected at all or were not fully corrected.”
Responses
The IDF said in response to the report: “The IDF, together with the police, works continuously to prevent criminal activity in live-fire zones. For this purpose, a dedicated defense system was established, operating units that conduct proactive activities, including regular field patrols, apprehending trespassers and dismantling illegal infrastructure. At the Nevatim base, a ground defense system is responsible for securing the base areas. We note that responsibility for securing the areas adjacent to the base lies with the police.
“In recent years, the defense system in the live-fire zones at the Tze’elim base has been significantly strengthened. As part of the changes, a dedicated unit was established that operates in the field to prevent criminal activity, alongside defense and live-fire zone command centers. In addition, cooperation with the police and the Green Patrol has been tightened, including the deployment of a Border Police undercover unit with high operational capability in the area, subordinate to changing operational needs. Moreover, operational units training in the live-fire zones are trained and briefed to handle incursion incidents when necessary.”
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s office responded: “This is a tendentious and detached report that presents distorted and twisted data on the National Security Ministry’s activity in the Negev. The comptroller chose to ignore the data provided to him, which completely contradicts what he published.”
The office cited figures for what it called “the revolution led by Ben-Gvir” in the Negev: “a 195% increase in the number of legal firearms held by civilians; a 13% increase in the number of police officers in the Southern District; from two standby squads in 2022 to 74 standby squads today; a 73% increase in the demolition of illegal structures; and a 317% jump in enforcement and indictments in protection racket offenses.”