The Israeli police launched a campaign of arrests in the Negev, affecting 40 Palestinians

Today, Tuesday, the Israeli authorities launched a massive arrest campaign in several villages in the Negev desert against the backdrop of the demonstrations and protests that took place in the region.

The protests were spearheaded by the residents of Sa’wat al-Atrash village confronting the bulldozing of their lands, with the aim of seizing it.

Eyewitnesses stated that the arrests of more than 40 people, most of them minors, were concentrated in the villages of: Tel Al-Sabaa, Al-Zarnouk, Shaqib Al-Salam, and other areas in the Negev.

They said that the Israeli forces stormed these villages since this morning, raiding a number of citizens’ homes and tampered with their contents before arresting dozens.

It is noteworthy that during the past week, the campaign of arrests affected more than 130 people, including women and children, some of whom are still being detained.

In this context, the Higher Steering Committee in the Negev held the Israeli police responsible for the attacks on the demonstrators.

In a statement they said that the police used military forces and drones to bombard them with tear gas, and carried out attacks against them. In addition to that, there was also a campaign of arbitrary arrests against them which is still ongoing.