Live blog: Activists hold ‘day of rage’ to protest Prawer Plan

Live blog: Activists hold 'day of rage' to protest Prawer Plan
Demonstrators clash with police in the northern village of Arara during anti-Prawer protests. (photo: Activestills/Oren Ziv)

Activists declared a “day of rage” across Israel and Palestine on August 1, the second such day of protests against an Israeli plan that would see the displacement of some 30,000 Bedouin citizens from their villages in the Negev.

Tens of thousands of Bedouin citizens of Israel live in “unrecognized” villages. Because the Israeli government does not recognize their claims to the lands they live on, they do not receive basic services such as connections to water lines and the power grid.

Click here for +972′s full coverage of the Prawer Plan

According to the plan, which the government did not consult the Bedouin community on when drafting, nearly all residents of the unrecognized villages will be evicted and forcibly relocated to planned communities. Many of the “unrecognized” villages predate the state, while others are populated with internally displaced peoples from other parts of the Negev from 1948.

Activists have called for protests in the Negev, the north of Israel, Ramallah and Jerusalem. A protest planned in Gaza city was reportedly canceled under pressure from Hamas. +972 brings you coverage of the protests as they happen.

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Update (10:36 p.m.):

One child arrested at demonstration in front of Damascus Gate in Jerusalem’s Old City. Police fire use sound grenades and tear gas to disperse crowd.

Update (6:45 p.m):

Two people are arrested as Negev protest comes to an end.

Live blog: Activists hold 'day of rage' to protest Prawer Plan
Bedouins and activists protest near the Tel Aviv-Beer Sheva highway, near the town of Lehavim, against the Israeli government’s Prawer Plan. (photo: Activestills)

Update (5:47 p.m.):

At least five 12 20 arrested in the northern village of Arara after blocking Route 65. Several activists were lightly injured.

Live blog: Activists hold 'day of rage' to protest Prawer Plan
Protesters come face to face with Israeli police during anti-Prawer protests in the northern village of Arara. (photo: Activestills/Oren Ziv)
Live blog: Activists hold 'day of rage' to protest Prawer Plan
A demonstrator is arrested during a protest against the Prawer Plan in Israel’s north. (photo: Activestills/Oren Ziv)
Live blog: Activists hold 'day of rage' to protest Prawer Plan
A demonstrator is held down by Israeli policemen during a protest against the Prawer Plan in Israel’s north. (photo: Activestills/Oren Ziv)

Update (5:30 p.m.):

Demonstrators near the southern town of Lehavim break through police barriers. Police on horseback prepare for confrontation.

Live blog: Activists hold 'day of rage' to protest Prawer Plan
Hundreds of activists protest against the Prawer-Begin Plan in the Negev Desert, August 1, 2013. (Yotam Ronen/Activestills.org)

Update (4:30 p.m.):

Hundreds of protesters gathered along the Tel Aviv-Be’er Sheva highway, near the town of Lehavim. A police spokesman said 400 officers were deployed to the protest.

Buses of protesters began arriving for a second demonstration near Arara in the North. Ten police vans and a water-canon truck were present.

Live blog: Activists hold 'day of rage' to protest Prawer Plan
Protesters against the Prawer Plan at a demonstration at Arara in the North of Israel, August 1, 2013 (Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

(More updates to come.)