The government announced Sunday that it was setting up five new town in the Negev. The project was initiated by Housing Minister Yoav Galant (Kulanu). The towns will be set up in the lower Negev, near Road 80. The decision is more of a policy statement, and in order for the vision to come to fruition, the government will need to do much work in terms of approving plans and pushing the project through the various administrative hoops. Nevertheless, said Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, the decision marked a “historic day for Israelis. We are building five new towns in the Negev. This is a momentous event.” Galant said that the project was “essential to ensure that Israelis are able to hold on to these territories, which have a small population but are very important on a national scale." Galant stressed that along with the new towns, the government would continue to strengthen existing ones. “The new towns will be built alongside the infrastructure of existing towns in order to prevent too much damage to the environment,” Galant said. By using existing infrastructure, he explained, there would less need to build new infrastructure, thus preserving the pristine Negev environment
