emptied lands This page intentionally left blank emptied lands A Legal Geography of Bedouin Rights in the Negev alexandre kedar ahmad amara oren yiftachel Stanford University Press Stanford, California Stanford University Press Stanford, California ©2018 by the Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system without the prior written permission of Stanford University Press. Printed in the United States of America on acid-free, archival-quality paper Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Kedar, Alexandre, author. | Amara, Ahmad, author. | Yiftachel, Oren, 1956– author. Title: Emptied lands : a legal geography of Bedouin rights in the Negev / Alexandre Kedar, Ahmad Amara, and Oren Yiftachel. Description: Stanford, California : Stanford University Press, 2018. | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2017023217 (print) | LCCN 2017026637 (ebook) | ISBN 9781503604582 (e-book) | ISBN 9781503603585 (cloth : alk. paper) Subjects: LCSH: Bedouins—Legal status, laws, etc.—Israel—Negev. | Bedouins—Land tenure—Israel—Negev. | Land tenure—Law and legislation—Israel—Negev. Classification: LCC KMK2107.M56 (ebook) | LCC KMK2107.M56 K43 2018 (print) | DDC 346.569404/320899272056949—dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017023217 Typeset by Bruce Lundquist in 10.5/15 Minion Pro To Claudia, my wife, best friend, and life partner, with all my love. (Sandy Kedar) To my father, Abo Amir, and son, Yazan, with much love. (Ahmad Amara) To the the al-‘Uqbi tribe and all Bedouin Arabs, and to the struggle for recognition, justice, and dignity. (Oren Yiftachel) This page intentionally left blank contents Acknowledgments ix part i. legal and geographic foundations of the negev 1 Introduction: Terra Nullius in Zion? 3 Chapter 1. The Legal Geography of Indigenous Bedouin Dispossession 19 part ii. critical legal history of the dead negev doctrine 43 Chapter 2. The Land Regime of the Late Ottoman Period 45 Chapter 3. The Land Regime of the British Mandate Period 63 Chapter 4. Formulating the Dead Negev Doctrine During the Israeli Period 87 viii contents part iii. reexamination of the legal geography of the negev 119 Chapter 5. Historical Geography of the Negev: Bedouin Agriculture 121 Chapter 6. Bedouin Territory and Settlement 143 part iv. bedouin indigeneity: international, comparative, and israeli perspectives 157 Chapter 7. The Bedouins as an Indigenous Community 159 Chapter 8. International Law, Indigenous Land Rights, and Israel 183 part v. contested futures 213 Chapter 9. State and Bedouin Policies and Plans 215 Conclusion 257 Appendixes 277 Notes 323 Index 391 acknowledgments This book project spans over two decades of research and activist work. During this period, we collaborated with hundreds of people, and it is impossible to mention each by name. However, we want to extend a warm acknowledgment to each and every one for their help, expertise, courage, and humanity in the uphill battle for Bedouin rights and recognition. We thank especially the Bedouin families who patiently taught us so much of what we know about their indigenous culture and history; they opened their cherished and sacred archives to us and gave invaluable support to our research and activism. Most notably we thank the al-‘Uqbi family, especially the tireless Nuri Hassan al-‘Uqbi, who has never stopped seeking justice for his community; and and to Sayach al-Touri Abu-Mudighim, Awad Abu-Freih and their families. These people, as well as all other communities living with- out state recognition, provide constant inspiration about dignity and struggle under extreme difficulties. From Alexandre (Sandy) Kedar. I would like to thank and acknowledge the help, assistance, and encouragement received from my family, particularly my wife, Claudia, who read, commented, supported, and was there for me in the long journey of writing this book. No words can express my love for her. Claudia’s love, intelligence, perceptiveness, and ongoing support have made this book possible. I cannot leave out my wonderful children, Tomer, Michal, and Yoav, whom