Mivtahim

Mivtahim (Hebrew: מִבְטַחִים‎, lit. Safe Havens) is a moshav in southern Israel. Located in the Hevel Eshkol area of the north-western Negev desert near the Gaza Strip border and covering an area of 4,000 dunams, it falls under the jurisdiction of Eshkol Regional Council. In 2019 it had a population of 439.[1]

Mivtahim

מִבְטַחִים‎
Old Security House in Mivtahim
Mivtahim
Coordinates: 31°14′31.92″N 34°24′28.43″E
CountryIsrael
DistrictSouthern
CouncilEshkol
AffiliationMoshavim Movement
Founded7 January 1947 (kibbutz)
1950 (moshav)
Population
 (2019)[1]
439

History

The village was first established on 7 January 1947 as a kibbutz of the HaOved HaTzioni movement.[2] Its name is taken[3] from Isaiah 32:18:

And my people shall abide in a peaceable habitation, and in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting-places.[4]

On 22 April 1948 there was a severe clash between the British Army and guards of the kibbutz, with armed units including tanks arriving at the gates. During the 1948 Arab–Israeli War residents decided to evacuate Mivtahim and join with residents of Nitzanim to found a new kibbutz. All that remains today of the original settlement is a security building.

In 1950 a moshav was founded adjacent to the abandoned kibbutz by immigrants from Kurdistan. In 1954 they were joined by immigrants from Morocco and more from Kurdistan. The moshav was used as an infantry base by the IDF during the Suez Crisis.

References
  1. "Population in the Localities 2019" (XLS). Israel Central Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  2. Place Names in Israel. A Compendium of Place Names in Israel compiled from various sources. Translated from Hebrew, Jerusalem, 1962 (Israel Prime Minister’s Office. The Israeli Program for Scientific Translations) p. 105 (Location of the book: Ben Zvi Institute Library, 12 Abarbanel St., Jerusalem; in the online-catalogue:
  3. Carta's Official Guide to Israel and Complete Gazetteer to all Sites in the Holy Land. (3rd edition 1993) Jerusalem, Carta, p. 335, ISBN 965-220-186-3 (English)
  4. Isaiah Chapter 32 Mechon Mamre
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