Israel's Ben-Gvir taunts Palestinians with video of home demolitions

Israel's extremist National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has taunted Palestinians by sharing a video of himself watching the demolition of Bedouin homes.

Ben-Gvir travelled to the Palestinian villages in the Negev to watch residential homes being bulldozed and tweeted the video with the message: "'Sorry Mohammad Magadli, this is a right-wing government."

This was a swipe at the Palestinian journalist Ben-Gvir told on the Israeli TV show N12 that the right of his family to travel around the occupied West Bank trumps freedom of movement for local Palestinians.

"My right, the right of my wife, of my children to move around on the roads in the West Bank is more important than the right to freedom of movement of the Arabs...I’m sorry Muhammed [Magadi]," he said on the show.

"That is the reality, that is the truth. My right to life precedes your freedom of movement."

The comments sparked outrage among Palestinians and rights groups who said that they highlighted the apartheid system that already exists in Israel and the occupied territory.

Israel's planned demolition of Palestinian Bedouin homes in the Negev has also been slammed by rights groups.

The Israeli government claims these homes were illegally built but this claim has been strongly opposed by residents and rights' experts who see it as a land grab by Israel disguised as a legal dispute.

Israel has repeatedly used court orders to confiscate Palestinian homes, including in the Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah.

Ben-Gvir joined Construction and Housing Minister Yitzchak Goldknopf to watch Israeli forces flatten homes in the Palestinian village of Tel Arad, describing it as a "sacred duty" and called for such demolitions "every two or three weeks".

In a message to local Palestinians, who have lived on the land for decades, he said: "We govern here and this country has a landlord."

The demolition campaign threatens the homes of 100,000 local Palestinians.

 Ma’igal Hoshla, a field coordinator in the Council of Unrecognised Villages in the Negev, said this was the first time an Israeli minister has observed homes being demolished in this way.

"Women, children and old people see with their own eyes how the homes of small children are being destroyed. It’s a cruel thing," he said, according to Haaretz.

Ben-Gvir was previously convicted of racial incitement against Palestinians in 2007 meaning that he would be unable to serve in the Israeli military.

He and other extremist figures such as Bezalel Smotrich were appointed to Israel's new government by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, sparking alarm and outrage, including in Israel's ally the United States.