Government approves additional NIS 4 billion investment in war-battered northern cities

By Zev Stub

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12 June 2026, 10:54 am

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Zev Stub is the Times of Israel's Diaspora Affairs correspondent.

Civilians and security forces at the scene where a missile fired by Hezbollah from Lebanon struck a parking area in Safed, causing heavy damage, April 10, 2026. (David Cohen/Flash90)

Israel’s government approved a regional development plan worth approximately NIS 4 billion ($1.1 billion) for the country’s north yesterday, aiming to strengthen communities in the Galilee through investments in housing, employment, infrastructure, health care and education.

The plan, covering 2026 to 2030, follows a separate government decision approved last week allocating about NIS 18 billion ($6.1 billion) to frontline communities in northern Israel, bringing total commitments to the war-battered region to roughly NIS 22 billion ($7.5 billion), the government said.

“We are not just rehabilitating the North; we are building a new and promising future for it,” Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said.

Northern mayors have long fumed at what they view as insufficient government attention and help for communities that have been continuously hit by Hezbollah attacks for several years, with many residents having left and businesses closed.

The initiative focuses on the cities of Safed, Acre, Nof Hagalil, Nazareth, Afula, Tiberias and Karmiel, and aims to attract new residents and strengthen local economies.

Key measures include financial incentives for families relocating to the region, support for high-tech and advanced manufacturing industries, transportation upgrades, tourism development and expanded health services. The plan also calls for investments in scientific and technological education, urban renewal projects and enhanced public security through increased municipal enforcement and emergency preparedness programs.

Separately, the government also approved a NIS 24.5 million ($7 million) package of incentives to encourage immigration to the country’s northern region and recruit immigrant physicians to strengthen the local health system.

Under the plan, new immigrants arriving after the government’s decision to settle in designated northern communities will receive an additional NIS 500 monthly housing subsidy. The payment will supplement existing rental assistance packages of up to NIS 2,000 available in some peripheral areas.

New immigrant doctors in the north will be eligible for additional financial incentives.