Neve Dekalim

Neve Dekalim is an Israeli settlement in the Gaza Strip , founded in 1983 , after the Israeli withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula . It borders the Palestinian city of Khan Yunis , lying between it and the Mediterranean coastline. The population consists of some 500 families, all of them Orthodox Jews . It is the largest Jewish settlement in Gaza and serves as the regional center for the primarily agricultural settlements surrounding it, and particularly for the settlements of the Gush Katif bloc. Neve Dekalim is scheduled to be evacuated as part of Israel's unilateral disengagement plan of 2004 . v t e

Place in Israel Neve Dekalim ( ) was an Israeli community in the Gush Katif settlement bloc in the Gaza Strip . It was founded in 1983 after the Israeli withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula , on sand dunes that were previously uninhabited. The village served as a regional center for the Gush Katif region and was the seat of the Hof Aza Regional Council . It was located between the Palestinian city of Khan Yunis and the Mediterranean Sea . The population consisted of about 520 families (2,600 people), mainly Orthodox Jews . It was the largest Jewish settlement in the Gaza Strip and served as the commercial center for the primarily agricultural settlements surrounding it, particularly the residents of the Gush Katif bloc. Located in the town were a large range of educational institutions including: day care centers, kindergartens, the regional elementary school, an ulpena (religious dormitory high school for girls), a hesder yeshiva, a yeshiva for advanced studies, a women's college, a community center, a research center for the study of the Sinai region, a youth center and a pensioners club. There were eight synagogues , the regional library, two medical clinics, a strip mall including fast food restaurants as well as a supermarket and a small zoo. The industrial area housed a variety of factories engaged in carpentry, metal work, printing, mechanics, juice production and a brand new cookie factory. The evacuation of Neve Dekalim began on August 15, 2005 by the Israeli Army and the Israeli Police , as part of the Israel unilateral disengagement plan , and was completed on 18 August. During the evacuation, many Neve Dekalim settlers, aided by activists from Israel proper, refused to leave and were forcibly removed. The homes were bulldozed , though the infrastructures were left intact to aid the future Arab development of the area. However, shortly after the Israelis left, a wave of Palestinian looting broke out in which greenhouses which had been donated to the Palestinan Authority were stripped of water pumping equipment. The Palestinian Al-Aqsa University opened a campus on the site shortly after the Israeli evacuation, and hopes the new campus will eventually replace its damaged Khan Yunis campus. [1] Photo Essay - Expulsion Forces in Neve Dekalim [2] CNN - Largest Gaza settlement evacuated, Israel says [3] Clashes, tears in Neve Dekalim [4] Looters strip Gaza greenhouses [5] A Palestinian university rises from the rubble of a former Israeli settlement

"Oasis of Palms") was an Israeli settlement and a community in the Gush Katif settlement bloc in the Gaza Strip . It was founded in 1983 after the Israeli withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula . Neve Dekalim served as a regional center for the Gush Katif region and was the seat of the Hof Aza Regional Council . It was located between the Khan Yunis Palestinian refugee camp and the Mediterranean Sea . Neve Dekalim was evacuated in August 2005 as part of Israel's unilateral disengagement plan . It was turned into a training camp by Hamas, which described it as a "military training camp for martyrs." "Settlements seen across the divide" .

Israeli settlement in the Gaza Strip (1983–2005) Former Israeli settlement Neve Dekalim ( Hebrew : נְוֵה דְּקָלִים , lit. ' Oasis of Palms ' ) was an Israeli settlement in the Gaza Strip . Comprising a part of Gush Katif , it was founded in 1983, shortly after Israel withdrew from the Sinai Peninsula to fulfill the Egypt–Israel peace treaty . It served as a regional centre for the Gush Katif settlement bloc and was the seat of the defunct Hof Aza Regional Council . The settlement was located in between the Mediterranean Sea and the Khan Yunis refugee camp . In August 2005, Neve Dekalim was dismantled by the Israeli government in pursuit of the Disengagement Plan Implementation Law , which had been approved by the Knesset six months earlier.