In a highly unusual protest, Israeli-Bedouin students in the Neve Midbar Regional Council were sent by their parents to school on camels and donkeys on Tuesday morning.

The protest took place on the background of a strike by the transportation company, which is refusing to provide busing for the students as it claims the government owes it funds.

A statement from the Neve Midbar Regional Council states that “the bus company of about 6,500 students unexpectedly stopped working as a protest against the non-payment of funds due to them, according to their claim, since February 2023.”

“The council has been in discussions with the Education Ministry for a long time to transfer transportation budgets, but the ministry insists on making the transfer of the budget conditional on the checking of individual routes. The council has no issue with the routes being checked but it is required to immediately transfer the budgets that are due for immediate transportation needs.”

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)