Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declared that construction will not take place on Sunday in the Golan Heights.
The decision follows a protest by the Druze community, which led to a situational assessment. Netanyahu's decision is in opposition to the position of National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir (Otzma Yehudit), who supported construction as usual on Sunday.
Netanyahu has also spoken to the leader of the Druze community, Sheikh Muwafak Tarif, and informed him that he has decided to accede to his request and refrain from restarting the construction in the Golan Heights until after Eid al-Adha, which falls on Tuesday.
Netanyahu also said that Eid al-Adha will be used to hold talks with Druze leaders, and that construction will be renewed next Sunday.
A statement from his office said that Netanyahu "instructed to act during the coming days to advance solutions to the planning and housing crisis in the Druze towns in the Carmel and Galilee, which hurt the entire Druze community, including young people who have been released to the IDF and who contribute to the State's security."
In a comprehensive article on the issue published on June 23, investigative reporter Atara Gorman of the Hebrew Makor Rishon newspaper wrote:
"The turbine project is a national infrastructure enterprise decided on by the government in 2019, and is the combined initiative of the Druze residents of the Golan Heights, the heads of the sector and Golan Heights council heads. It will provide electrictiy to 50,000 households annually. The privately owned land is on the Israel-Syria border and was rented for a 20 year period from the Druze owners, each of whom has already received 60-100,000 NIS, depending on the sze of their holding, over the past three years...The Syrians n the other side of the border, did not look uypon the project favorably and began stirring up protest. The Syrian Druze on the other side of the border sent video clips and other messages to their fellow Druze in Israel, calling on them to rebel violently against the project which they claim is on conquered Syrian land."