The Negev: Israel’s Desert Heartland
The Desert at the Heart of Israel The Negev covers more than half of Israel’s land. And yet, for generations, it remained one of the country’s most difficult regions to settle. Water was scarce. Summers were unforgiving. Communities existed far from major cities or trade centers. Still, people came. David crossed these desert regions while fleeing King Saul. Ancient Jewish communities traveled through them. Nabataean merchants built trade routes here connecting Africa, Arabia, and the Mediterranean world. Later, Zionist pioneers looked at the desert not as empty land, but as part of Israel’s future. David Ben-Gurion famously believed Israel’s...