Introduction

In the next few months, the Israeli parliament is expected to legislate on a plan to demolish homes and displace 30,000 Arab Bedouin from the Negev desert of southern Israel.1 On 11 September 2011, the Israeli cabinet decided to go ahead with the controversial ‘Prawer plan’, which aims at providing a full resolution to continuing issues between the state and Bedouin over land ownership, recognition of villages, and provision of basic infrastructure and facilities.