Re'im
Encyclopedia
Re'im is a secular kibbutz
in southern Israel
, and one of the Gaza vicinity
villages. Located at the confluence
of Besor Stream
and Gerar Stream in the north-western Negev
desert, it falls under the jurisdiction of Eshkol Regional Council
. In 2007 it had a population of 354.
Re'im was founded in 1949 by members of the Israel Boy and Girl Scouts Federation who were demobilized from the Palmach
. The kibbutz changed names several times before taking its current name.
members with the provisional name HaTzofim Vav (lit. Scouts F). It was then named Tel Re'im after the Arabic translation of the nearby archaeological
site of Tell Jemmeh. It was eventually renamed Re'im in memory of members of the Gar'in who were killed in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
. The name, meaning 'friends', was taken from the Book of Proverbs
(18:24) to symbolize them.
The kibbutz was planned by the architect Hanan Habaron, one of the founders of the kibbutz and a member until his death in 2002. The ascetic style was described as a visual expression of Habaron's social and architectural worldviews. Asaf Kashtan, an Israeli architect who wrote a book about Habaron, said that in recent years, Habaron's style fell out of favor with Re'im's residents.
The Israel Defense Forces
(IDF) has a base near the kibbutz. Prior to Israel's disengagement from Gaza in 2005, the base was used as a camp for the evacuating troops. After the disengagement, Re'im became the target of Qassam rocket
s fired at it from the Gaza Strip
. In 2008, IDF troops at the nearby base near Nahal Oz
requested that the base be relocated to the area near Re'im, away from the range of Hamas
' mortar fire.
, next to the Re'im Junction and Gama Junction. The ruins of ancient Gama (Tell Jemmeh) are located to the west of the kibbutz. West of Re'im is the kibbutz Kissufim
, and north is Be'eri
. Re'im's elevation is 50 m above sea level, and the Besor Stream
passes through its territory.
for stamping, also has a factory in Re'im. The kibbutz also has a room letting business, including a Bedouin
accommodation tent. It suffered as a result of the Israel-Gaza conflict
, and the kibbutz lowered its prices. In 2008, Re'im embarked on a project that would make it the first community in Israel, and perhaps in the entire world, to rely entirely on solar energy for domestic consumption
. Sunday, a company, which markets the technology in Israel, is to install solar panels on all 130 rooftops in the kibbutz. According to estimation, the system will be capable of manufacturing at least 2.5 megawatts per hour during peak consumption. The cost of the project is estimated at NIS60-100 million and the investment is expected to pay for itself in 10 years. The cost and revenues from electricity are to be divided evenly between the kibbutz and Sunday, and any excess energy is to be sold to the Israel Electric Company.
Kibbutz
A kibbutz is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism...
in southern Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, and one of the Gaza vicinity
Gaza Strip
thumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...
villages. Located at the confluence
Confluence
Confluence, in geography, describes the meeting of two or more bodies of water.Confluence may also refer to:* Confluence , a property of term rewriting systems...
of Besor Stream
Besor
HaBesor is a wadi in southern Israel. The stream begins at Mount Boker , and spills into the Mediterranean Sea near Deir al-Balah in the Gaza Strip, where it is called Wadi Gaza...
and Gerar Stream in the north-western Negev
Negev
The Negev is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The Arabs, including the native Bedouin population of the region, refer to the desert as al-Naqab. The origin of the word Neghebh is from the Hebrew root denoting 'dry'...
desert, it falls under the jurisdiction of Eshkol Regional Council
Eshkol Regional Council
The Eshcol Regional Council is a regional council in the north-western Negev, in Israel's Southern District. The regional council's territory lies midway between Ashkelon and Beersheba, bounded on the west by the Gaza Strip while the eastern border abuts the territory of the Bnei Shimon Regional...
. In 2007 it had a population of 354.
Re'im was founded in 1949 by members of the Israel Boy and Girl Scouts Federation who were demobilized from the Palmach
Palmach
The Palmach was the elite fighting force of the Haganah, the underground army of the Yishuv during the period of the British Mandate of Palestine. The Palmach was established on May 15, 1941...
. The kibbutz changed names several times before taking its current name.
History
The kibbutz was established in 1949 by former PalmachPalmach
The Palmach was the elite fighting force of the Haganah, the underground army of the Yishuv during the period of the British Mandate of Palestine. The Palmach was established on May 15, 1941...
members with the provisional name HaTzofim Vav (lit. Scouts F). It was then named Tel Re'im after the Arabic translation of the nearby archaeological
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
site of Tell Jemmeh. It was eventually renamed Re'im in memory of members of the Gar'in who were killed in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
1948 Arab-Israeli War
The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known to Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation The war commenced after the termination of the British Mandate for Palestine and the creation of an independent Israel at midnight on 14 May 1948 when, following a period of civil war, Arab armies invaded...
. The name, meaning 'friends', was taken from the Book of Proverbs
Book of Proverbs
The Book of Proverbs , commonly referred to simply as Proverbs, is a book of the Hebrew Bible.The original Hebrew title of the book of Proverbs is "Míshlê Shlomoh" . When translated into Greek and Latin, the title took on different forms. In the Greek Septuagint the title became "paroimai paroimiae"...
(18:24) to symbolize them.
The kibbutz was planned by the architect Hanan Habaron, one of the founders of the kibbutz and a member until his death in 2002. The ascetic style was described as a visual expression of Habaron's social and architectural worldviews. Asaf Kashtan, an Israeli architect who wrote a book about Habaron, said that in recent years, Habaron's style fell out of favor with Re'im's residents.
The Israel Defense Forces
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
(IDF) has a base near the kibbutz. Prior to Israel's disengagement from Gaza in 2005, the base was used as a camp for the evacuating troops. After the disengagement, Re'im became the target of Qassam rocket
Qassam rocket
The Qassam rocket is a simple steel artillery rocket developed and deployed by the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military arm of Hamas. Three models have been produced and used between 2001 and 2011....
s fired at it from the Gaza Strip
Gaza Strip
thumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...
. In 2008, IDF troops at the nearby base near Nahal Oz
Nahal Oz
Nahal Oz is a kibbutz in southern Israel. Located in the northwestern part of the Negev desert close to the border with the Gaza Strip and near the development towns of Sderot and Netivot, it falls under the jurisdiction of Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of...
requested that the base be relocated to the area near Re'im, away from the range of Hamas
Hamas
Hamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
' mortar fire.
Geography
Re'im is located between roads 232 and 234 in the Western NegevNegev
The Negev is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The Arabs, including the native Bedouin population of the region, refer to the desert as al-Naqab. The origin of the word Neghebh is from the Hebrew root denoting 'dry'...
, next to the Re'im Junction and Gama Junction. The ruins of ancient Gama (Tell Jemmeh) are located to the west of the kibbutz. West of Re'im is the kibbutz Kissufim
Kissufim
Kissufim is a kibbutz in the northwestern Negev desert in Israel. Located adjacent to the Gaza Strip, it falls under the jurisdiction of Eshkol Regional Council. It sits at an altitude of 92 metres above sea level.- History :...
, and north is Be'eri
Be'eri
Be'eri is a kibbutz in southern Israel. Located in the north-western Negev desert near the border with the Gaza Strip, it falls under the jurisdiction of Eshkol Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 774.-History:...
. Re'im's elevation is 50 m above sea level, and the Besor Stream
Besor
HaBesor is a wadi in southern Israel. The stream begins at Mount Boker , and spills into the Mediterranean Sea near Deir al-Balah in the Gaza Strip, where it is called Wadi Gaza...
passes through its territory.
Economy
The kibbutz's economy is based on agriculture and its laser factory, Isralaser. IsraBig, which manufactures diceDie (manufacturing)
A die is a specialized tool used in manufacturing industries to cut or shape material using a press. Like molds, dies are generally customized to the item they are used to create...
for stamping, also has a factory in Re'im. The kibbutz also has a room letting business, including a Bedouin
Bedouin
The Bedouin are a part of a predominantly desert-dwelling Arab ethnic group traditionally divided into tribes or clans, known in Arabic as ..-Etymology:...
accommodation tent. It suffered as a result of the Israel-Gaza conflict
Israel-Gaza conflict
The Gaza–Israel conflict is a theater of the long-term Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the territory of the Gaza Strip. Palestinians' active resistance to military occupation was escalated in the territory following the overwhelming election to government of the militant Islamic political party...
, and the kibbutz lowered its prices. In 2008, Re'im embarked on a project that would make it the first community in Israel, and perhaps in the entire world, to rely entirely on solar energy for domestic consumption
Solar power in Israel
Solar power in Israel and the Israeli solar energy industry has a history that dates to the founding of the country. In the 1950s, Levi Yissar developed a solar water heater to help assuage an energy shortage in the new country. By 1967 around one in twenty households heated its water with the...
. Sunday, a company, which markets the technology in Israel, is to install solar panels on all 130 rooftops in the kibbutz. According to estimation, the system will be capable of manufacturing at least 2.5 megawatts per hour during peak consumption. The cost of the project is estimated at NIS60-100 million and the investment is expected to pay for itself in 10 years. The cost and revenues from electricity are to be divided evenly between the kibbutz and Sunday, and any excess energy is to be sold to the Israel Electric Company.
External links
- Official website
- Re'im Negev Information Center