Sufa ( he, סוּפָה, ''lit.'' Storm) 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 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 in the

Hevel Shalom Hevel Shalom (, lit. ''Shalom region'') 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 Villages in Hevel Shal ...

area of the north-western

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, it falls under the jurisdiction of

Eshkol Regional Council Eshkol Regional Council ( he, מועצה אזורית אשכול, ''Mo'atza Ezorit Eshkol'') is a regional council in the north-western Negev, in Israel's Southern District. The regional council's territory lies midway between Ashkelon and Beershe ...

. In it had a population of . A border crossing between Israel and 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.. ...

named after the kibbutz is located nearby.

Kibbutz

The kibbutz was founded in 1982 by former residents of Sufa, an

Israeli settlement Israeli settlements, or Israeli colonies, are civilian communities inhabited by Israeli citizens, overwhelmingly of Jewish ethnicity, built on lands occupied by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War. The international community considers Israeli se ...

Sinai Sinai commonly refers to: * Sinai Peninsula, Egypt * Mount Sinai, a mountain in the Sinai Peninsula, Egypt * Biblical Mount Sinai, the site in the Bible where Moses received the Law of God Sinai may also refer to: * Sinai, South Dakota, a place ...

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

dust storm A dust storm, also called a sandstorm, 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. Fine particles are transporte ...

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

Nirim Nirim ( he, נִירִים, ''lit.'' Meadows) 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. In it ...

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

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

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

Border crossing

The Sufa border crossing was used by Palestinians working on Israeli farms. During the

Second Intifada The Second Intifada ( ar, الانتفاضة الثانية, ; he, האינתיפאדה השנייה, ), also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada ( ar, انتفاضة الأقصى, label=none, '), was a major Palestinian uprising against Israel. ...

(2000–2005), the border crossing and the military base next to it were subject to several Palestinian attacks, and the crossing was intermittently closed. In October 2007, the crossing was closed, leaving the

Kerem Shalom Kerem Shalom ( he, כֶּרֶם שָׁלוֹם, ''lit.'' Vineyard of Peace) is a kibbutz in southern Israel. Located on the Gaza Strip-Israel-Egypt border, it falls under the jurisdiction of Eshkol Regional Council. In it had a population of . Hi ...

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

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 ...

objections saying it was harder to guard than Kerem Shalom, Deputy

Defense Minister A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

Matan Vilnai Matan Vilnai ( he, מַתָּן וִילְנָאִי; born 20 May 1944) is an Israeli politician and a former major general in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). A former Knesset member and government minister, he was appointed ambassador to Chin ...

decided to reopen the crossing. It was then 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 The Qassam rocket ( ar, صاروخ القسام ''Ṣārūkh al-Qassām''; also ''Kassam'') is a simple, steel artillery rocket developed and deployed by the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military arm of Hamas. These rockets cannot be fired ...

barrages.

References

External links

Official website

Sufa
Negev Information Center {{Authority control Kibbutzim Kibbutz Movement Populated places established in 1982 Israel–Gaza Strip border crossings Populated places in Southern District (Israel) 1982 establishments in Israel