Merkaz Shapira ( he, מֶרְכַּז שַׁפִּירָא) (lit: Shapira Center) is a religious village in the Southern District of

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

. Located in the southern

Shephelah The Shephelah or Shfela, lit. "lowlands" ( hbo, הַשְּפֵלָה ''hašŠǝfēlā'', also Modern Hebrew: , ''Šǝfēlat Yəhūda'', the "Judaean foothills"), is a transitional region of soft-sloping rolling hills in south-central Israel str ...

between

Kiryat Malakhi Kiryat Malakhi ( he, קִרְיַת מַלְאָכִי, also Qiryat Malakhi or Kiryat Malachi) is a city in the Southern District of Israel, from Ashkelon. In it had a population of . Its jurisdiction is 4,632 dunams (~4.6 km2). Histor ...

and

Ashkelon Ashkelon or Ashqelon (; Hebrew: , , ; Philistine: ), also known as Ascalon (; Ancient Greek: , ; Arabic: , ), is a coastal city in the Southern District of Israel on the Mediterranean coast, south of Tel Aviv, and north of the border with ...

, it falls under the jurisdiction of

Shafir Regional Council Shafir Regional Council ( he, מועצה אזורית שפיר, ''Mo'atza Azorit Shafir'') is a regional council in the Southern District of Israel near the city of Kiryat Gat. The council is bordered on the north by the Be'er Tuvia Regional Co ...

. In it had a population of .

History

The village was founded in the beginning of the 1950s as the Shafir Regional Center, a group of regional educational facilities on land belonging to the depopulated

Palestinian Palestinians ( ar, الفلسطينيون, ; he, פָלַסְטִינִים, ) or Palestinian people ( ar, الشعب الفلسطيني, label=none, ), also referred to as Palestinian Arabs ( ar, الفلسطينيين العرب, label=non ...

village of

Al-Sawafir al-Gharbiyya Al-Sawafir al-Gharbiyya was a Palestinian Arab village in the Gaza Subdistrict. It was depopulated during the 1948 War on May 18, 1948, during the second stage of Operation Barak. It was located 30 km northeast of Gaza city. History Remain ...

. In 1958, it was merged with the farm Dganim, which was abandoned due to failure. The name was changed in October 1957 to Merkaz Shapira, after the wounded

Knesset The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...

member

Moshe Shapira Haim-Moshe Shapira ( he, חיים משה שפירא, 26 March 1902 – 16 July 1970) was a key Israeli politician in the early days of the state's existence. A signatory of Israel's declaration of independence, he served continuously as a minist ...

, but due to legal problems, it was only changed officially in 1970.Merkaz Shapira
Homee.co.il Merkaz Shapira contains the

Or Etzion Yeshivat Or Etzion is a Hesder, Hesder Yeshiva, religious high school, and religious army preparation high school. It is located in Merkaz Shapira, Israel. It was founded in 1977. Its Rosh Yeshiva is Rabbi Haim Drukman. The "Yeshiva Gavoha" rol ...

yeshiva A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are s ...

which consists of both a high school and post-high school religious learning institutions (on its eastern end) and an elementary and middle school for itself and nearby villages (

Azrikam Azrikam ( he, עַזְרִיקָם) is a moshav in southern Israel. Located near Ashdod, it falls under the jurisdiction of Be'er Tuvia Regional Council. In it had a population of . Etymology The village is named after "Azrikam, a descendant of ...

Ein Tzurim Ein Tzurim ( he, עֵין צוּרִים, ''lit.'' Rock Spring) is a religious kibbutz in southern Israel. Located south of Kiryat Malakhi, it falls under the jurisdiction of Shafir Regional Council and is a member of the Religious Kibbutz Moveme ...

Masu'ot Yitzhak Masu'ot Yitzhak ( he, מְשּׂוּאוֹת יִצְחָק, ''lit.'' Yitzhak's Beacons) is a moshav shitufi in southern Israel. Located near Ashkelon, it falls under the jurisdiction of Shafir Regional Council. The original kibbutz in Gush Et ...

Shafir Shafir ( he, שָׁפִיר) is a moshav in southern Israel. Located in the Shephelah near Kiryat Malakhi, it falls under the jurisdiction of Shafir Regional Council. In it had a population of . History Shafir was founded on 15 August 1949 by imm ...

Shtulim Shtulim ( he, שְׁתוּלִים, lit. ''Planted'') is a moshav in south-central Israel. Located near Ashdod, it falls under the jurisdiction of Be'er Tuvia Regional Council. In it had a population of . History The moshav was founded in 1950 b ...

and Zerahia). The offices of the Shafir Regional Council are also located within the village. Merkaz Shapira has five synagogues - Ohel Yitzhak, The Jerusalemite Synagogue, The Moroccan Synagogue, the

Ashkenazi Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...

Ashmoret Avraham and the Yemenite Ahuzat Shalom.

Notable residents

Haim Drukman Haim Meir Drukman ( he, חיים דרוקמן), born 15 November 1932) is an Israeli Orthodox Rabbi and former politician. He serves as Rosh Yeshiva of Ohr Etzion Yeshiva, and head of the Center for Bnei Akiva Yeshivot. Biography Drukman w ...

References

{{Shafir Regional Council Villages in Israel Religious Israeli communities Populated places in Southern District (Israel) Populated places established in 1948 1948 establishments in Israel