A report published Tuesday by State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman warned that effective governance has broken down in the Negev, especially in Bedouin towns, as police stations lack the necessary manpower to fight crime. The document riled National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who oversees police and has made the restoration of law and order to the southern desert region a major talking point. “It’s on the prime minister to address the issue of the lack of governance in the Negev, a strategic issue with weighty implications for the State of Israel,” wrote Englman in the report, noting that the situation has only worsened since the agency’s last report on the topic five years prior. The report revealed that as of 2024, police stations in the Negev were consistently understaffed — short a total of 205 officers — amid law enforcement’s unsuccessful efforts nationwide to enlist new recruits in recent years.…