As the Druze residents of Israel’s north continued to engage in protests and threaten violence, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu spoke with Druze spiritual leader Sheikh Muwafak Tarif on Motzei Shabbos and informed him that he has decided to comply with his request and halt the work on the $400 million wind-turbine project until after Eid al-Adha (Feast of the Sacrifice).

Netanyahu also stated that dialogue will take place with the leaders of the Druze community during Eid al-Adha and the work will resume next Sunday.

In a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office, it was stated that Netanyahu “instructed to act in the coming days to promote solutions to the planning and housing plight in the Druze settlements in Carmel and the Galil which harms the entire Druze community, including young people released from the IDF who contribute to the security of the state.”

Meanwhile, thousands of Druze residents attended an” emergency conference” in Kafr Yasif on Friday and called for war. During Tarif’s speech, he said that if the government doesn’t fulfill the Druze sector’s demand, “Israel will face a response the country hasn’t seen until now.”

According to a Kan News report, during Tarif’s speech, there were shouts against National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who called to continue the work and not give in to violence.

According to an investigative report on the issue by Makor Rishon on Friday, the turbine project is a cooperative initiative of the Druze residents of Ramat HaGolan, their leaders and Ramat HaGolan council leaders. The project, which will provide electricity to 50,000 homes, is being carried out on private land on the Israeli-Syrian border. Druze landowners have already been paid NIS 60-100,000, depending on the size of their holding, over the past three years.

However, Druze Syrians on the other side of the border began stirring up provocations against the project, sending them videos and messages to Israeli-Druze residents to rebel against the project which they claim is on conquered Syrian land.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)