Netzer Hazani (Israeli settlement)

Netzer Hazani ( ) was an Israeli settlement located in the northeast corner of the Gush Katif (a bloc of 17 Israeli settlements in the southern Gaza strip ) and evacuated in Israel's disengagement of 2005. The settlement was named after Michael Hazani , Minister of Social Welfare and Agriculture and one of the pioneers of the settlement movement. Netzer Hazani was originally founded as a paramilitary Nahal (Fighting Pioneer Youth) settlement called Gadish on May 29, 1973, and handed over to civilians in February 1977 as an Orthodox moshav becoming the first civilian village of Gush Katif. On the day of the ceremony, Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin announced, "This is a great day for the State of Israel and for Jewish settlement, a day which symbolizes our deep-rooted presence in this area, which has since the Six-Day War become an integral part of the State and its security". After the ceremony Rabin fixed the first Mezuza on the entrance to one of the houses, together with the son of minister Hazani. [1] Most residents earned their living from agriculture. In the 70's and 80's, the main crop was floral, later in the 90's, vegetables would be grown in the greenhouses. Towards the end of the 90's, the Netzer Hazani farmers joined other farmers in Gush Katif, in growing bug-free leafy vegetables and herbs. A budding organic agriculture initiative was also successful. The chief rabbi of Netzer Hazani, Rabbi Yitzhak Arama, (aged 40, married with six children) was shot and killed by a member of the Islamic Jihad group as he was driving with his family in Gush Katif on December 20, 2002. Residents of Netzer Hazani were forcefully evicted on August 18, 2005 by the IDF and Israeli Police . By that time, it was home to 84 families including over 410 people.¹