Summary
The Azazmeh sheikh whose unique agreement with the state founded Segev Shalom in 1979 on the tribe’s own traditional lands, and the father of its first elected mayor (Settling for Less — The Planned Resettlement of Israel’s Negev Bedouin, PDF p.64, 74).
Details
- The agreement was designed to allow the tribe to settle on its own traditional lands rather than be relocated on others’ land, as had been the case with tribes resettled years earlier (PDF p.64).
- Sheikh Ouda played a key role in the town’s development from its inception, was well regarded in Jewish Israeli society as one of very few Negev Bedouin to have fought in a battle unit during the Yom Kippur War, and had over fifty children by six wives (PDF p.74).
- His son Amir recalled that Sheikh Ouda worked with the British government even before the State of Israel existed, and that David Ben-Gurion gave him a pistol in friendship (Amir Abu-Mu’amar, 10 December 1992) (PDF p.78).
- His son Ashaf completed a dental degree and opened a clinic in the town (Moshe, 15 February 2007) (PDF p.86).
- The Postscript reports that Sheikh Ouda passed away in early 2008 “at a very ripe old age—96”, just before his son Amir’s re-election as Rosh Ha’Moatzah in November 2008 (PDF p.233).
Related pages
Settling for Less — The Planned Resettlement of Israel’s Negev Bedouin, Segev Shalom, Amir Abu-Mu’amar, Azazmeh