Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced on Saturday a brief, temporary moratorium on construction on a wind turbine project in the Golan Heights, which has led to mass protests by members of the Druze community this week.
A statement from the prime minister’s office said Netanyahu spoke to Sheikh Mufaq Tarif, a leader of Israel’s Druze community, and told him that construction would halt until after the Eid al-Adha holiday on Wednesday.
The announcement came as Tarif warned the government to stop work on the wind turbines near the town of Majdal Shams or face “a reaction the country has never seen” and urged the prime minister to seek an arrangement. Called which is acceptable. For Druze residents.
According to Haaretz, Tarif spoke to about 2,000 people at an emergency meeting in Kfar Yassif about the events of the past week. He also urged Israel’s leaders to repeal laws that discriminated against the Druze, which he said included the controversial 2018 nation-state law, which defined Israel as the nation of the Jewish people; and the so-called Kaminitz Law of 2017, which imposed high penalties on illegal construction and which minorities say has been used to disproportionately target them.
In the statement, Netanyahu’s office urged a solution to the Druze community’s housing issues, especially those who served in the military.
In a meeting with Druze leaders on Friday that was already scheduled, IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi said the army wanted “equality and partnership”, noting that the community had “contributed to national security through service in the IDF”. Made an extraordinary contribution.”
Members of the Druze community protest the construction of a new wind farm in the Golan Heights, June 21, 2023 (Ayal Margolin/Flash90)
“Even in difficult times, we must act according to the law and seek good solutions.”
On Thursday, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gwir said work on the wind farm project would halt during next week’s Eid al-Adha holidays, following mass protests, but would resume shortly thereafter.
Ben Gvir had previously taken a radical approach to the Druze protests against wind farms.
“The project will continue as usual. Governance is important to all of us. The State of Israel will not bow before those who throw Molotov cocktails,” Ben Gvir said on Twitter after a meeting with Tariff and the Druze Community Council.
In a video posted by Ben Gvir, Tarif said, “The Druze community is against violence, we condemn violence.”
“We all agree on this,” Tarif said, adding that the community plans to have further talks about the project with government officials.
“I really hope that during these holy days we will reach agreements,” he said.
Public Security Minister Itamar Ben Gwir (centre-right) meets Druze spiritual leader Mowaffak Tarif and members of the Druze Community Council, June 22, 2023 (Twitter screenshot; used in accordance with section 27a of the copyright law)
Massive protests against the wind farms turned into riots on Tuesday and Wednesday, with Druze protesters burning tires and throwing stones, fireworks and Molotov cocktails at large police forces guarding the area. Twelve police officers were injured, and eight protesters were injured – four of them seriously, including one from a gunshot wound.
Police said they had turned to groups of people blocking roads and trying to attack police positions in Masade town, and some had used live fire.
Protests were held at many places.
Earlier on Thursday, Ben Gvir reportedly overruled Israel Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai, who wanted to stall the project. Despite the turmoil a day earlier, the construction work continued on Thursday.
According to multiple reports, police initially ordered a halt to work on the wind turbines in the wake of the protests, then reversed that decision and allowed work to continue. The Israel Police issued a statement denying the reports and saying that such a decision rests entirely with the political establishment.
Netanyahu’s statement said the decision to temporarily halt construction was taken in consultation with Shabtai and Shin Bet head Ronen Bar.
With the wind turbine project, Israel has sought to increasingly turn its energy production towards cleaner methods, with wind power being a key component of those plans. The Ministry of Energy has previously said that the Golan Heights, with its high altitude and wind-swept valleys, is an optimal location for wind farms.
Members of the Druze community gather with their flags to protest against an Israeli wind turbine project near the village of Majdal Shams in the Golan Heights, on June 21, 2023, as tear gas smoke fills the air. (Photo by JALAA MAREY / AFP)
Landowners who signed lease agreements with Energix, the company behind the project, say they were not made aware of the potential impacts of having turbines on their plots. They say they were lured into signing what they describe as onerous leases, which, combined with a boycott imposed on the company by influential religious leaders, prompted many to withdraw. Is.
Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Six-Day War and annexed the territory in 1981 – a move that was not recognized internationally until the administration of former US President Donald Trump in 2019.
The Golan’s 26,000 Druze belong to a branch of Islam, speak Hebrew, and hold Israeli residency status that entitles them to travel and work freely. The area is also home to approximately 22,000 Israeli Jews, and is a popular destination for domestic tourists.
But most Druze residents of the Golan have chosen not to take Israeli citizenship – meaning they do not vote in national elections and therefore have no elected representatives in the Knesset – and many remain inextricably linked to Syria. However, this is slowly changing as more and more are applying for citizenship calmly.
Druze from other parts of Israel participate fully in civilian life and are noted for their contribution to the country’s military and security forces.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
