Sufa is a kibbutz

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 the Hevel Shalom

Hevel Shalom

Hevel Shalom is an area in the western Negev desert close to Israel's border with the Gaza Strip and Egypt's Sinai. This area was elected to be substitutive area for evacuees from Yamit.-Villages:...

 area of 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'...

 and a border crossing between Israel

Israel

The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

 and 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...

.

The kibbutz

The kibbutz 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 2006 it had a population of 241. It was founded in 1982 by former residents of Sufa

Sufa, Sinai

Sufa was an Israeli settlement and kibbutz in Sinai. Located two kilometres east of Yamit, it was evacuated as part of the Egyptian-Israeli Peace Treaty in 1982...

, an Israeli settlement

Israeli settlement

An Israeli settlement is a Jewish civilian community built on land that was captured by Israel from Jordan, Egypt, and Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War and is considered occupied territory by the international community. Such settlements currently exist in the West Bank...

 in Sinai which was evacuated as part of the Egyptian-Israeli Peace Treaty. Its name is derived from the severe dust storm

Dust storm

A dust / sand storm is a meteorological phenomenon common in arid and semi-arid regions. Dust storms arise when a gust front or other strong wind blows loose sand and dirt from a dry surface. Particles are transported by saltation and suspension, causing soil to move from one place and deposition...

s which occurred in the original settlement. To the north of the kibbutz, where Nirim

Nirim

Nirim is a kibbutz in the northwestern Negev in Israel. Located near the border with the Gaza Strip, about 7 kilometers east of Khan Yunis, it falls under the jurisdiction of Eshkol Regional Council...

 was between the years 1946-1949, lies the memorial site "Dangur", commemorating the casualties of the Egypt

Egypt

Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

ian attack on Nirim and a memorial for the eight fallen soldiers.

The border crossing

The Sufa border crossing was open in the past to Palestinians working in Israeli farms. During the Second Intifada, the border crossing and the military base next to it were subject to several Palestinian attacks, and the crossing has been intermittently closed. In October 2007, the crossing was closed, leaving the Kerem Shalom

Kerem Shalom

Kerem Shalom is a kibbutz in the Eshkol Regional Council and a border crossing near the meeting of the Gaza Strip-Israel-Egypt borders.- Kibbutz :The kibbutz was founded in 1966 adjacent to the triborder area by members of Hashomer Hatzair...

 crossing the only point of entry. In November, despite IDF

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...

 objections who said it was harder to guard than Kerem Shalom, Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai

Matan Vilnai

Matan Vilnai is an Israeli politician and a former Major General in the Israel Defense Forces . He is currently Minister for Home Front Defense and a member of the Knesset for Independence.-Biography:...

 decided to reopen it. It has since been used to transfer Humanitarian assistance to the Strip.
In May 2008 the crossing was once again closed following a mortar attack which wounded an IDF soldier. A few days later, thousands of Palestinians protested the Israeli blockade. Six people were reported wounded by the IDF in that incident. On June 1, about forty Israeli farmers protested at the crossing, in a bid to stop the transportation of goods into the Strip despite the ongoing 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....

barrages.

External links

• Official website
• Sufa Negev Information Center