Umm al-Hiran totaly demolished, only Jews allowed to new city

The Supreme Court ruled in 2015 that “the planned town will not prevent [those from Bedouin villages] from living there and anyone who wishes to live in Hiran is entitled to do so.”

But despite the state’s repeated promises to the court that Hiran would accept all new residents – regardless of religion or ethnic background – this is not the case and Hiran is, in fact, closed to non-Jewish residents.

According to a document uncovered by Adalah in August 2017, Hiran’s cooperative association bylaws specify that only Orthodox Jews will be permitted to live in the new town. The bylaws read: “an individual may be approved by the admissions committee and become a member of the Hiran cooperative association if they meet the following qualifications: a Jewish Israeli citizen or permanent resident of Israel who observes the Torah and commandments according to Orthodox Jewish values…”

Attorneys Bishara and Morany emphasized that Bedouin families who have already been uprooted from Umm al-Hiran and transferred to other locations are now living in inhumane conditions, despite the promises of Israeli authorities.

Umm al-Hiran families forced by Israeli authorities to sign transfer agreements and to leave their village “live today in dangerous temporary structures without even the most minimal living conditions, and without any hookups to basic infrastructure such as water, electricity, or sewage,” attorneys Bishara and Morany wrote.

Adalah’s letter to the attorney general includes photographs documenting these harsh living conditions.