Ben Gvir heading to Tarabin al-Sana after suspected arson attack

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir speaks to police forces at the entrance to Tarabin al-Sana, a Bedouin town in the Negev, during a days-long raid in the village on December 30, 2025. (Office of Itamar Ben Gvir)
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir speaks to police forces at the entrance to Tarabin al-Sana, a Bedouin town in the Negev, during a days-long raid in the village on December 30, 2025. (Office of Itamar Ben Gvir)

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir is en route to the southern Bedouin town of Tarabin al-Sana following a suspected arson attack in a nearby Jewish town overnight.

Five cars went up in flames in Lehavim, an affluent town northeast of Tarabin al-Sana, in what police suspect is arson carried out as revenge for a sweeping raid in the Bedouin village.

The far-right minister is expected to deliver a message at the entrance to Tarabin al-Sana denouncing the “price tag” attack against the police operation that aims to “bring back governance to the Negev,” his office says.

Tensions have been high in the Negev for a month as police crack down on crime in the Bedouin sector, as part of Operation New Order, which Ben Gvir declared in mid-November.

On Monday, hundreds of heavily armed officers entered Tarabin al-Sana in an ongoing raid that has seen 24 arrests so far, including four minors on suspicion of stone-throwing. Residents have complained that the operation constitutes collective punishment.

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