Netivot Appeals to Supreme Court Over Unpaid Reconstruction Funds

The municipality of Netivot has filed a petition with the High Court of Justice, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and several ministers of failing to transfer funds allocated for the city's post-October 7th reconstruction and development program. The city argues that over a year after the government's decision (number 3303) was made, the implementation by various ministries has significantly reduced Netivot's share of the rehabilitation budgets, with some approved funds remaining unutilized.

This is the second time Netivot has approached the High Court regarding its post-October 7th recovery. Despite being located only 8 kilometers from the Gaza border and suffering rocket attacks, casualties, and significant damage, Netivot was initially excluded from the "Tkuma” (Revival) administrative region, which covers areas up to 7 kilometers from the border. Following an earlier petition in February 2024, the government established a supplementary aid framework for communities outside the Tkuma region. A government review identified 25 additional communities, including Netivot, that experienced severe damage but lacked adequate government support.

In August 2025, Government Decision 3303 was passed, approving a rehabilitation and development plan for these 25 communities from 2025 to 2029, with a total budget of approximately 1.8 billion shekels. The initial petition was withdrawn after this decision, and the state was ordered to pay court costs. However, the municipality is now back in court, not to seek recognition of the need for rehabilitation, but to demand the implementation of the already approved decision.

The plan is intended for 25 communities across six authorities, including Netivot, Ofakim, and several regional councils. Netivot, with about 61,000 residents representing 50% of the total population covered by the decision, claims it is receiving only a quarter of the allocated budgets. The city alleges that some ministries calculate budget distribution based on the total population of the authorities, including residents not covered by Decision 3303, thereby increasing the share for regional councils and diminishing Netivot's portion.

Specific grievances include the Ministry of the Negev and Galilee's criteria for public institution renovations, which allegedly limit Netivot to a quarter of the budget despite its large population. The municipality also criticizes the National Security Ministry for applying a general, pre-existing budget model for routine violence prevention, rather than specific criteria for the post-attack rehabilitation program. Furthermore, a 10 million shekel budget for technological security measures was allegedly not provided as a separate fund, and a social welfare budget of 21 million shekels for five years was rendered partially unusable due to administrative delays and the Ministry of Finance's refusal to transfer unused funds to subsequent years.

Lawyers for Netivot stated that the petition does not seek to establish new budgetary policy but to ensure the implementation of the existing government decision using appropriate criteria, arguing that the current application distorts the decision's intent to correct the disparities caused by the severe impact on these communities.