Antelope farm in the Arava Desert closes due to council tax hike

An antelope farm in the Arava Desert, one of the key tourist attractions in the “far south” of Israel, will cease operations on January 1, 2026.

The owner of the farm, Yossi Ben, said on ITV Channel 12 that the reason for the closure of the farm is a sharp increase in the municipal tax levied by the Arava Tikhon regional council.

According to Ben, the size of the “arnona” increased 64 times to 1.8 million shekels in two years (including a retroactive increase for 2025).

Farm staff have been laid off and all bookings for next year have been cancelled.

The regional council of Arava Tikhon said that the Ministry of Internal Affairs requires an assessment of the “arnona” every five years, while in the local council it was last assessed more than 10 years ago.

By Editor