Retamim () is a

kibbutz A kibbutz ( he, קִבּוּץ / , lit. "gathering, clustering"; plural: kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1909, was Degania. Today, farming h ...

in the central

Negev The Negev or Negeb (; he, הַנֶּגֶב, hanNegév; ar, ٱلنَّقَب, an-Naqab) is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The region's largest city and administrative capital is Beersheba (pop. ), in the north. At its southe ...

desert in southern

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 three kilometres northwest of

Revivim Revivim ( he, רְבִיבִים, , (rain) showers) is a kibbutz in the Negev desert in southern Israel. Located around half an hour south of Beersheba, it falls under the jurisdiction of Ramat HaNegev Regional Council. In it had a population of ...

, it falls under the jurisdiction of

Ramat HaNegev Regional Council Ramat HaNegev Regional Council ( he, מועצה אזורית רמת הנגב, ''Mo'atza Azorit Ramat HaNegev'', ''lit.'' Negev Heights Regional Council) is a regional council in the Negev desert in Israel. With around 8,000 residents spread acros ...

. In it had a population of .

History

The community was founded by a group of

demobilised Demobilization or demobilisation (see spelling differences) is the process of standing down a nation's armed forces from combat-ready status. This may be as a result of victory in war, or because a crisis has been peacefully resolved and militar ...

IDF IDF or idf may refer to: Defence forces * Irish Defence Forces * Israel Defense Forces *Iceland Defense Force, of the US Armed Forces, 1951-2006 * Indian Defence Force, a part-time force, 1917 Organizations * Israeli Diving Federation * Interac ...

soldiers and new immigrants who started to gather in kibbutz

Be'eri Be'eri ( he, בְּאֵרִי) 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 it had a population of . History Kib ...

in 1978. A second group was established in

in early 1979. The two groups merged in mid-1979 and moved to a caravan site opposite what is now Park Golda after

Tlalim Tlalim ( he, טְלָלִים) is a kibbutz in southern Israel. Located in the Negev desert, it falls under the jurisdiction of Ramat HaNegev Regional Council. In it had a population of . Etymology ''Tlalim'' is the plural form of the Hebrew wor ...

had moved to its permanent site in December 1979. However, due to lack of support from the

Kibbutz Movement The Kibbutz Movement ( he, התנועה הקיבוצית, ''HaTnu'a HaKibbutzit'') is the largest settlement movement for kibbutzim in Israel. It was formed in 1999 by a partial merger of the United Kibbutz Movement and Kibbutz Artzi and is made ...

, the kibbutz did not expand, and the movement acted to evict the members, some moved to

others to other kibbutzim and the rest to the towns, until eventually only one of the original members remained In 1983 the kibbutz was finally established on its present site, assisted by

Nahal Nahal ( he, נח"ל) (acronym of ''Noar Halutzi Lohem'', lit. Fighting Pioneer Youth) is a program that combines military service with mostly social welfare and informal education projects such as youth movement activities, as well as training ...

soldiers from the Hebrew Scouts. In 1994 it united with kibbutz Revivim after suffering from social problems and members leaving. Some of its houses were converted into a holiday village called Rotem BeMidbar, though this closed in 2000. It now serves as an

immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

absorption centre catering largely for

immigrants Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

from

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

References

{{Ramat Negev Regional Council Kibbutzim Kibbutz Movement Populated places established in 1983 Populated places in Southern District (Israel) 1983 establishments in Israel Ethiopian-Jewish culture in Israel