The land being vacated is among the most valuable in Israel.
By Hezy Laing
The IDF is advancing a major real‑estate and infrastructure reshaping plan that will relocate 11 military bases from central Israel, releasing some of the most valuable land in the country for civilian development.
The initiative, signed by the Defense Ministry, the Finance Ministry, and the Israel Land Authority, continues a national strategy first approved in 2011 to shift IDF installations southward and consolidate operations into modern, efficient campuses.
This long‑term national effort is known as “IDF Southern Relocation”, a multi‑year program launched formally in 2012 and expected to continue through 2030, with several major campuses already completed or under construction in the Negev.
The newly approved phase is expected to free between 2.3 and 3 square kilometers of centrally located land.
This area is planned to accommodate approximately 19,000 new housing units, one million square meters of commercial and industrial space, and around 1,000 hotel rooms, making it one of the largest land‑release projects ever undertaken in Israel.
Although the full list of bases has not been publicly detailed, the sites are described as long‑standing logistics, training, and administrative installations in the central region, including areas historically associated with Tzrifin, Tel Hashomer, and other high‑value zones near Rishon LeZion, Ramla, and Tel Aviv.
A photo accompanying the announcement shows soldiers at the entrance to Tzrifin Base, which has already begun phased evacuation in earlier stages of the relocation program.
The units leaving central Israel will move primarily to the Negev, including the expanding Beersheba technology and communications campus, which is being developed to host intelligence, cyber, and C4I units.
These new southern bases are designed to house thousands of soldiers, NCOs, and officers, though exact numbers per base have not been released.
The relocation is expected to strengthen the Negev’s economy by increasing demand for housing, transportation, education, and employment, while also accelerating Beersheba’s transformation into a national technology hub.
The broader national plan aims to shift population and investment away from the crowded center toward both the north and south.
The land being vacated is among the most valuable in Israel.
Real‑estate analysts estimate that releasing 2.3–3 square kilometers in the Tel Aviv metropolitan area could be worth tens of billions of shekels, depending on zoning and development density.
Past relocations, such as earlier phases of the Tzrifin evacuation, have already generated significant municipal and national revenue through redevelopment.
