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Sa'ad ( he, סַעַד, ''lit.'' Aid) is a
religious kibbutz
The Religious Kibbutz Movement ( he, הקיבוץ הדתי, ''HaKibbutz HaDati'') is an organizational framework for Orthodox kibbutzim in Israel. Its membership includes 22 communities, 16 of them traditional kibbutzim, and 6 others in the cate ...
in the
Negev desert in southern
Israel. Located near the
Gaza Strip
The Gaza Strip (;The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p.761 "Gaza Strip /'gɑːzə/ a strip of territory under the control of the Palestinian National Authority and Hamas, on the SE Mediterranean coast including the town of Gaza.. ...
, and the cities of
Sderot and
Netivot, it falls under the jurisdiction of
Sdot Negev Regional Council. In it had a population of .
Due to its proximity to
Gaza, the kibbutz has been the target of numerous rocket attacks.
History
The kibbutz was founded on 30 June 1947, the day after
Operation Agatha, by graduates of the
Bnei Akiva movement. It was established in a manner similar to the
tower and stockade settlement campaign of the late 1930s, and was the first religious kibbutz to be founded by
Sabras.
During the 1948 War, the kibbutz was almost entirely destroyed by the Egyptian army. The local museum "Ma'oz Mul 'Aza" (Stronghold at Gaza) details the history of the war in this area, opposite the Gaza strip.
Following the war, the kibbutz members renewed their cultivation of the land, developing over the following fifty years, a multi-generational population that generates its income from agriculture and industry.
Economy
Sa'ad is one of Israel's largest producers of
carrot
The carrot ('' Daucus carota'' subsp. ''sativus'') is a root vegetable, typically orange in color, though purple, black, red, white, and yellow cultivars exist, all of which are domesticated forms of the wild carrot, ''Daucus carota'', nat ...
s, with a quarter of the country's production. Other crops include potatoes, avocados, almonds and citrus fruit. Sa'ad has a large dairy farm and a poultry farm.
Sa'ad's industries include
Syfan, a plant that manufactures plastic shrink film for packaging, and
Popli, which supplies popcorn products and pet food.
The kibbutz also has a fashion outlet called Kav LeKav, which sells clothes for men, women, and children; Ahinoam Jewelry which produces handmade jewelry in sterling silver; a graphic design studio "Kesem"; and an auto service center.
The kibbutz also operates Beit Shikma, a convalescent and geriatric home for patients who require full-time care.
The
dairy farm on the kibbutz was the Israeli leader in 2011 for productivity with an average of 13 785 litres per head that year. A
dairy cow named Kharta, was the world record holder giving 18 208 litres of milk.
Education
The kibbutz runs and participates in several unique educational frameworks such as Youth Education, a school and dormitory framework for teenagers from broken homes; Foster Family, for grade school children; Conversion Ulpan, for families and young people who are
converting to Judaism; and Nativ, the
USY
United Synagogue Youth (USY) is the youth movement of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism (USCJ). It was founded in 1951, under the auspices of the Youth Commission of what was then the United Synagogue of America.
USY operates in the ...
year program in Israel for American teens.
Kibbutz Sa'ad has a regional religious elementary school for grades 1 through 9 under the auspices of Israel's Ministry of Education. Kibbutz Sa'ad, Kibbutz
Alumim, and
Moshav
A moshav ( he, מוֹשָׁב, plural ', lit. ''settlement, village'') is a type of Israeli town or settlement, in particular a type of cooperative agricultural community of individual farms pioneered by the Labour Zionists between 1904 an ...
Tkuma cooperate in running the Da'at School for their children. Pupils from towns in the surrounding area also attend.
References
External links
Official website
{{Sdot Negev Regional Council
Kibbutzim
Religious Kibbutz Movement
Populated places established in 1947
Gaza envelope
1947 establishments in Mandatory Palestine
Populated places in Southern District (Israel)