planned community
A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...
town
A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city.
The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...
currently under construction in the northeastern
Negev
The Negev ( ; ) or Naqab (), is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The region's largest city and administrative capital is Beersheba (pop. ), in the north. At its southern end is the Gulf of Aqaba and the resort town, resort city ...
desert, in southern
Israel
Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
. The town is located on the slopes of Mount Hiran, along the route between
Meitar
Meitar () is a small local council north-east of Beersheba, in Israel's Southern District. The town lies on Highway 60 just south of the Green Line on the southern edge of Mount Hebron, alongside the Yatir Forest. Metar is 19 km north o ...
and Arad. The settlement is being built on the land previously occupied by the unrecognized
Bedouin
The Bedouin, Beduin, or Bedu ( ; , singular ) are pastorally nomadic Arab tribes who have historically inhabited the desert regions in the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, and Mesopotamia (Iraq). The Bedouin originated in the Sy ...
village of
Umm al-Hiran
Umm al-Hiran (; ) was a Bedouin village settled by Arab-Israeli citizens of the Abu Alkian tribe located in the Wadi Atir area of the Negev desert in southern Israel. Located near Hura, the village was established in 1956 and is one of 46 unr ...
.
The settlement was originally named Hiran, a temporary name inspired by the nearby Mount Hiran. In 2022, the town's name was officially changed to "Dror". Or Movement, a movement that promotes Jewish settlements, stands behind the construction and the promotion of the town.
History
The resolution to create the settlement was reached in 1999, leading the Israel Lands Administration and the
Ministry of Construction and Housing
The Ministry of Construction and Housing (, ''Misrad HaBinui VeHaShikun'') is a portfolio in the Israeli cabinet. The ministry was created in 1961. Until 1977 and for a period from November 2014Ministry of Environmental Protection due to its impact on forest areas and lands designated for a nature reserve.
In 2012, the National Planning and Building Council recommended the establishment of a settlement intended for the Israeli national-religious community. However, this proposal was ultimately not approved by the Government of Israel.
Following the evacuation of the final residents of Umm al-Hiran in 2017 and 2018, the development of the settlement of Hiran began. In January 2019,
Interior Minister
An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a Cabinet (government), cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and iden ...
Aryeh Deri
Aryeh Makhlouf Deri (; ), also Arie Deri, Arye Deri, or Arieh Deri (born 17 February 1959), is an Israeli politician and one of the founders of the Shas political party who served as the Vice Prime Minister, Minister of Health, and Minister ...
signed an order that annexes the settlement to the
Tamar Regional Council
The Tamar Regional Council (, ''Mo'atza Ezorit Tamar'') is a regional council in Israel's Southern District, on the south and western edges of the Dead Sea along the Arava valley. The council was established in 1955 with the opening of lodging a ...
, despite the council opposition. In November 2022, construction of the settlement's infrastructure began.
Controversy
The residents of Umm al-Hiran fought against the Israeli authorities' desire to demolish their village from 2004 to 2024.
In August 2017, the Hiran Cooperative Association began the construction and planning of the town of Hiran. The town was planned to be built on the site of the Bedouin village of Umm al-Hiran, which Israeli authorities intended to evacuate together with the village Atir. This decision sparked significant controversy and public outrage.Adalah, a
human rights organization
A human rights group, or human rights organization, is a non-governmental organization which advocates for human rights through identification of their violation, collecting incident data, its analysis and publication, promotion of public awareness ...
, has disclosed a document from the Israeli Ministry of Industry and Commerce, requiring residents wishing to live in Hiran to be Jews, and "adhere to the Torah and commandments in alignment with the principles of
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism is a collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Torah, Written and Oral Torah, Oral, as literally revelation, revealed by God in Ju ...