Israel advances crocodile plan to stop Palestinian prisoners escaping

Israel advances crocodile plan to stop Palestinian prisoners escaping Submitted by Nadav Rapaport on Fri, 07/17/2026 - 14:43 Government removes legal protections for Nile crocodiles as Ben Gvir pushes for detention compound ringed by reptiles A crocodile inside an enclosure at Nama Zoo in Gaza City on 1 June 2023 (Mohammed Salem/Reuters) Off The Israeli government has stripped Nile crocodiles of their protected status, paving the way for a proposal to build a detention facility for Palestinians surrounded by the reptiles, Israeli media reported on Thursday. Environment Minister Idit Silman signed a decree on Wednesday reclassifying Nile crocodiles as a "specially managed wild animal" - a new legal category that allows the state to keep the animals for security purposes, according to Israeli news site Ynet . In the decree, Silman said Israel's security forces could now keep crocodiles under specific conditions.