- Introduction
- Israeli Communities,
with Map
- Did you know?
1] Gush Katif Agriculture
2] Education in Gush Katif and the Gaza Strip Communities
- Historical Timeline
1] Biblical Period (pre-11th century BCE - 529 BCE)
2] Greco-Roman Period (332 BCE - 6th century CE)
3] Middle Ages (635-1488)
4] Ottoman-British Period (1516-1946)
5] Early Israeli Period (1948-1967)
6] Modern Israeli Period (1968-Present)
- Palestinian Population
1] 19th and early 20th Century
2] From 1946 to the Present
- References & Bibliography
A fascinating picture emerges from the historical information below.
Beginning with modern Israeli settlement, charted by date, we take you back through the rich history of conquest and Jewish settlement in the Gaza area (which was historically settled primarily only from what is now Gaza City northwards); there is also background information on Palestinian settlement and population.
Please note:
All years listed for Israeli communities give the original founding date. In some cases, communities began as “Nahal” outposts of the IDF, and only later became civilian. Internet sites elsewhere may therefore list founding dates which refer to such an outpost acquiring civilian status, or to the date when a large wave of immigrants moved to the community in question.
It is also noticeable that some communities were founded immediately subsequent to the evacuation of Yamit and the return of all the Sinai to Egypt, by people relocating from Yamit.
| Name |
Founded* |
Population |
Brief Description |
|---|
| Kfar Darom |
1946**
1970** |
400
|
Religious. “Alei Katif” produce factory. Torah and Land of Israel Institute – analyzes and finds solutions to halachic problems in agriculture. |
| Morag |
1972 |
200
|
Religious agricultural moshav shitufi*. |
| Katif |
1973 |
370
|
Religious, with yeshiva high school & Talmud Torah. Agricultural + factories for substrates and woven fabrics. |
| Netzer Hazani |
1973 |
410
|
Religious. Named after Michael Hazani, Minister of Social Welfare and Agriculture. |
| Bnei Atzmon |
1978 |
600
|
Originally Atzmona in the Sinai Peninsula. Moved to Gush Katif in the wake of the treaty with Egypt. Religious. Large regional girls high school. Agriculture and farming. Half of families participate in shared income and expenses. |
| Bedolach |
1979 |
220
|
Religious, agricultural moshav*. |
| Gadid |
1979 |
310
|
Religious agricultural moshav*. Mostly French-speaking families. |
| Ganei Tal |
1979 |
380
|
Religious & mixed. Flowers & vegetables. Holiday Resort. |
| Slav |
1980 |
25
|
Agricultural. Mixed secular and religious. |
| Nissanit |
1982 |
1,100
|
Mixed secular and religious. |
| Gan Or |
1982 |
320
|
Religious agricultural moshav*. |
| Alei Sinai |
1983 |
370
|
Non-religious. Many members are former residents of Yamit in the Sinai Peninsula, which was evacuated as part of the treaty with Egypt. |
| Kfar Yam |
1983 |
10
|
Non-religious. Agricultural. |
| Neve Dekalim |
1983 |
2,600
|
The largest of the Gush Katif communities as well as the municipal and educational center for Gush Katif. Religious. Hotel & Beach. |
| Rafiah Yam |
1984 |
150
|
Agricultural. Mixed secular and religious. Specializes in cherry tomatoes. |
| Netzarim |
1972;1984 |
450
|
Religious. |
| Pe'at Sadeh |
1989 |
120
|
Agricultural. Mixed secular, religious, traditional. |
| Dugit |
1990 |
80
|
Fishing |
| Tel Katifa |
1992 |
60
|
Agricultural. |
| Kerem Atzmona |
2000 |
25
|
Religious. |
| Shirat HaYam |
2000 |
40
|
Religious. |
*A moshav is a community where the members share agricultural equipment and market their produce jointly. Some moshavim have profit sharing as well (moshav shitufi). This is in distinction to a kibbutz, where all homes and property are owned jointly, and all income and expenses are shared, regardless of source.
**Kfar Darom was originally built in 1946, destroyed in 1948, and rebuilt in 1970.
More information on the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs Site
1] Gush Katif Agriculture:
The agricultural produce of Gush Katif represents some 10% of all agricultural produce raised in Israel; it accounts for 65% of Israel's organic export industry; 90% of Israel's bug-free leafy vegetables; 45% of tomato exports and 95% of Israel's cherry tomato exports; 60% of Israel's herb exports; 60% of Israel's geranium exports come solely from Ganei Tal in Gush Katif.
There are 350 family agricultural enterprises in Gush Katif, employing 5,000 Jews and 5,000 Palestinians; Gush Katif hot houses cover an estimated 900-1,000 acres and are estimated to be worth over $80 million. Total annual revenues are around $60-70 million.
2] Education in Gush Katif and the Gaza Strip Communities:
Israeli communities in the Gaza Strip put a heavy emphasis on education, with over 5,000 school-age children (including boarders from all over Israel).
Currently there are: 44 day care centers, 33 kindergartens, 6 elementary schools, 3 high schools, 6 yeshivot (rabbinical education institutions), 3 kollelim (institutes of continuing rabbinical education), 4 midrashot (women's further religious education colleges), and 1 mechinah tzva'it (pre-army institute).
3. Israel Education Ministry data show that approximately 40 educational institutions are currently operating in the Gush Katif area, with approximately 1,680 students.
4. There are almost 1,700 Israeli families and households in the Gaza Strip settlements.
5. Industry, Trade, and Labor Ministry data show that, as of 2004, 3,016 employed persons resided in the Gaza Strip, with 2,650 being wage earners and 366 being independents.
6. 426 families from the Gaza Strip and northern Samaria have signed onto the Nitzanim plan.
7. The Ministerial Committee on the Implementation of the Disengagement Plan authorized a government team led by Prime Minister's Office Director-General Ilan Cohen to negotiate with the settlers and reach agreement with them, according to Article 85 of the Disengagement Plan Implementation Law.
The committee also authorized the Israel Lands Administration to negotiate with landowners in the northern Ashkelon area and to reach conditional agreement with them regarding land purchases.
Prime Minister Sharon ordered the purchase of 320 mobile homes to serve as temporary housing for settlers and directed that preparations be made to purchase approximately 300 additional mobile homes in the future.
1] Biblical Period (pre-11th century BCE - 529 BCE)
2] Greco-Roman Period (332 BCE - 6th century CE)
3] Middle Ages (635-1488)
4] Ottoman-British Period (1516-1946)
5] Early Israeli Period (1948-1967)
6] Modern Israeli Period (1968-Present)
1] Biblical Period (pre-11th century BCE - 529 BCE)
| Date or Period |
Event |
|---|
| pre-11th century BCE |
A seafaring people from an Aegean isle, probably Crete, invaded the south-eastern Mediterranean coast, then under Egyptian Pharaonic control. The Bible refers to these invaders as “Philistines” (P'lishtim) and the land they invaded as “Philistia” (P'leshet). The root means “to invade” or “foreigner”. There are no written records, so the true tribal name(s) or their cultural origin(s) are unknown. The territory of Philistia lay between Gaza City in the south, to Ashdod, some 30km (20 miles) to the north.
Through most of history, the majority of today's Gaza Strip, south of Gaza City, was not settled; modern-day Ashkelon and Ashdod lie well north of the Gaza Strip. |
| 11th-10th centuries BCE |
The Bible reports a series of attacks and counter-attacks between Philistines and Israelites. King David subdues Philistia, which becomes a vassal state consisting of the Pentapolis of the five major Philistine cities: Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and Gat, each with its own king; these kings bore Canaanite names. Likewise, there are no archeological remains of Philistine pottery – only Canaanite pottery. |
| 10th-9th centuries BCE |
Following the division of Solomon's united kingdom into the weakened kingdoms of Israel and Judah, the Philistines continue raids into Israelite territory. Map
http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Facts+About+Israel/
Israel+in+Maps/ The+Kingdom+of+David+
and+Solomon+-+1077+-+997+BCE.htm |
| 8th-7th centuries BCE |
Assyria conquers large parts of both the Jewish and Philistine areas. Assyrian records refer to Philistia as “Palastu”, which pays tribute and aids Assyria in its wars with Egypt. The Kingdom of Judah, which survives the Assyrian invasion, reasserts control over parts of Philistia. Egyptian raids into Philistia also occur. |
| 604 BCE |
King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon lays waste to Ashkelon. In successive years, his armies capture the other four cities of the Pentapolis, and their Philistine populations are mostly killed or dispersed. References to a Philistine nation cease, although the territory continues to be known as Philistia. |
| 529 BCE |
The area of Gaza is conquered by the Persians who control both the area and the rest of the Land of Israel for nearly two centuries. The population of the Gaza region during this period is a mixture of Persians, Assyrians, Egyptians, Israelites and Canaanites. |
2] Greco-Roman Period (332 BCE - 6th century CE)
| Date or Period |
Event |
|---|
| 332 BCE |
Alexander the Great conquers much of the Middle East, including the Gaza region. Gaza City was the only city in the Land of Israel to strongly oppose Alexander's forces, the Israelites having welcomed Alexander as a liberator from Persian oppression. Alexander had much of Gaza City's population sold into slavery in retribution. Greek rule lasts for over two centuries. The local mixed population of Gaza acculturate. |
| 96 BCE |
Hasmonean King Alexander Janneus (Yannai) captures Gaza City and Rafiah to the south; orders the razing of Gaza City. |
| 63 BCE |
Roman rule begins under Pompey who captures the remains of Gaza City from the Maccabees. |
| 57 BCE |
Gaza City is rebuilt as a Roman town, under General Gabinius. |
| 30 BCE |
King Herod, Rome's Jewish vassal, receives control over Gaza City from Octavian (later known as Augustus). Herod, as is his wont, renovates the city, creating the boundaries it would have until modern times. Map:
http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Facts+About+Israel/
Israel+in+Maps/Kingdom+of+Herod-+30+BCE+to+70+CE.htm |
| 4 BCE |
Augustus divides Herod's kingdom; transfers Gaza City to Syrian control. |
| 66 CE |
Gaza City and neighboring villages are destroyed in fighting with the Romans during the Great Revolt of 66-70 CE. |
| 2nd-3rd centuries |
Eretz Yisrael (the Land of Israel) is under pagan Roman rule until 324C.E., and the rise of the Christian Emperor Constantine. Jewish population of Gaza grows. Remains of a synagogue from this period are found in a modern mosque built over the ancient site. |
| 4th-6th centuries |
Eretz Yisrael is under Christian Byzantine rule. Jews continue to be allowed to live in the Gaza area, though banned from Jerusalem. A synagogue with a mosaic dating it precisely to the Greek year 589 (508/9 CE) still sits in the harbor at Gaza City. Roman paganism competes with Christianity amongst the non-Jewish population.
The Talmud (Sota 20b), written at this time, refers to a great sage, Eliezer ben Yitzchak, who lived in the Jewish town of Kfar Darom, the Deir al-Balah of today in the Gaza Strip. This town was the basis of the settlement of the same name which was to be built some 1,500 years later to the SE of Deir al-Balah. |
| |
|
3] Middle Ages (635-1488)
| Date or Period |
Event |
|---|
| 635 |
Muslim Arabs invade from the Arabian Peninsula. Various Islamic empires will conquer and wrest control from one another dozens of times until the arrival of the Christian Crusaders nearly five centuries later. |
| 8th century |
One of the great Masoretes (preservers of Biblical textual traditions), Rabbi Moshe, lived at this time in Gaza City. Map
http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Facts+About+Israel/Israel+in+Maps/
Jewish+Communities+in+the+Land+of+Israel+-7th-11th.htm |
| 867 |
Bernard the Wise, a Christian pilgrim, describes Gaza City as being “rich in all things”. |
| 11th century |
Rabbi Ephraim of Gaza City becomes the Chief Rabbi of Cairo (Fostat). |
| 1099 |
The Crusaders take over the Land of Israel, including the Gaza region, from Muslim control. |
| 1152 |
Gaza City becomes a Templar stronghold, under the Crusader King, Baldwin III. |
| 1170 |
The great Kurdish conqueror, Saladin, conquers parts of the Land of Israel, from the Crusaders, including the area of Gaza, thus beginning the Ayyubic dynasty. |
| 1229 |
Egyptian rule asserted over Gaza region. [The Crusaders had retaken the area from the Ayyubids, prior to the Egyptian invasion.] |
| 1260 |
The beginning of the Mamluk period (until 1516). The Mamluks were soldiers, taken as children from the Asian steppes, converted to Islam, and given military training by their Egyptian masters – who rule over the Land of Israel through them. |
| 1322 |
Sir John Maundeville, a Christian pilgrim, describes Gaza City as “the city of Palestine (Philistia?), now called Gaza, which is a gay and rich city; and it is very fair, and full of people, and is at a little distance from the sea.” |
| 1432 |
Bertrandon de la Brocquiere, visiting during the early Ottoman Period, reports that the Governor of Gaza City is a Circassian (i.e. from the Caucasus Mountains of southern Russia). He also reports that local Muslims regularly mistreat Christian Pilgrims. |
| July, 1481 |
Meshulam of Volterra, Italy, a Jewish pilgrim, reports that along the coast near Khan (Yunis?), gangs of pirates from Rhodes regularly raid the coast, plundering and taking slaves, reminiscent of the Philistine invaders. Upon arriving in Gaza, he finds that 50-60 Jewish families reside in Gaza City. All of the local wine is produced by Jews. Other Gazan Jews work as artisans. Gaza City is described as a fine, unwalled, city with a circumference of 4km, i.e. the size of the Old City of Jerusalem. |
| April, 1488 |
The great Mishnah commentator, Ovadiah of Bartinura, Italy, describes Gaza City similarly to Meshulam of Volterra's description 7 years earlier, and meets the Chief Rabbi of Gaza, R. Moshe of Prague. |
4] Ottoman-British Period (1516-1946)
| Date or Period |
Event |
|---|
| Dec. 1516 |
Beginning of Ottoman rule over Eretz Yisrael ; in 1520, Suleiman I becomes Sultan. His 46-year reign is marked by an exemplary respect for minorities, including Jewish refugees from the Spanish Inquisition.
Jewish community in Gaza City is flourishing, with a Bet Din (Jewish religious court) and a yeshiva (rabbinical institute of higher learning). The local rabbis ruled that Jewish farmers had to tithe their produce and refrain from working the land during the Sabbatical year, as for Eretz Yisrael. |
| 1526 |
The Jewish Community of Gaza City numbers around 95 families. |
| 1546 |
The Jewish Community of Gaza City numbers around 120 families. |
| 1556 |
115 Jewish families in Gaza City (600-700 people) - Ottoman registry
Source: "A Historical Survey of the Jewish Population in Palestine", presented to the United Nations in 1947 by Vaad Leumi, on Behalf of the Creation of a Jewish State.
http://www.jewishhistory.com/jh.php?
id=Timeline&content=Timeline
|
| 1597 |
: 73 Jewish families in Gaza City (350-450 people) - Ottoman registry
Source: ibid |
| 16th century |
The Jewish community in Gaza City is flourishing, with a Bet Din (Jewish religious court) and a yeshiva (rabbinical institute of higher learning). The local rabbis ruled that Jewish farmers had to tithe their produce and refrain from working the land during the Sabbatical year, as for Eretz Yisrael. |
| 17th century |
Rabbi Israel Najara is Chief Rabbi of Gaza, as well as head of the Bet Din. Poet and polyglot, he is also known for the Sabbath hymn, “Ya Ribon Olam”. |
| May 1665 |
Shabtai (Sabbetai) Tzvi announces to the Jewish community in Gaza City that he is the awaited Messiah. |
| 1799 |
Napolean Bonaparte briefly occupies Gaza City and environs. |
| 1831 |
Egypt, under Mohamet Ali, conquers Eretz Yisrael via the Gaza region. Too strengthen his control, he allows Europeans to establish consulates, accords European citizens more rights than previous Muslim administrations. |
| 1840 |
The Ottomans convince the European powers to help them end Egyptian rule, by granting extended rights to European citizens. |
| 1853-1856 |
The Crimean War. The Ottoman Empire, desperate to defeat Russia who seeks to control Christian shrines in Jerusalem, grants European citizens the right to buy land, a right previously reserved only for Muslims. |
| July 22, 1857 |
British Consul James Finn reports that the Ottoman government will not allow him to punish Muslim ulema (religious authorities), and in particular the Mufti of Gaza, whom he accuses of being part of the ulema who incite to sedition, burglary, and murder. |
| 1914-1917 |
World War I affects Eretz Yisrael. The Ottoman Empire, already oppressive towards Jews, orders a series of evictions of Jews from the Land of Israel, including the 2,000 strong Jewish community in Gaza City. |
| October 1917 |
General Allenby's British troops take Gaza City from Ottoman forces, after several unsuccessful attempts. The region is part of the British Mandate awarded by the UN to England after WWI. After the War, Jews return in small numbers to Gaza City. |
| 1929 |
Massive Arab Muslim riots rock the British Mandate; hundreds of Jews are massacred. Survivors living in mostly Arab areas are forced to flee their homes penniless, including the approximately 50 Jews living in Gaza City. |
| 1946 |
British estimates put Gaza City's Arab population at approximately 46,000. Rafah (Rafiah) in the south is a village of 700.
On October 11th, Kfar Darom, a religious Kibbutz, is founded in the east-central part of the Gaza region, one of 11 communities built in the northern Negev from October 6, 1946, in a tower and stockade defense line operation by the Jewish Agency for Israel. |
5] Early Israeli Period (1948-1967)
| Date or Period |
Event |
|---|
| May 15th, 1948 |
Surrounding states' Arab armies invade the newly declared State of Israel.
The Egyptian 1st Battalion begins its surge to attack Beersheva, Hebron, Bethlehem, and finally Jerusalem, with an initial assault on the two-year old religious Kibbutz Kfar Darom, in the Gaza region. Only a few days earlier, Kfar Darom had held off an attack by the Muslim Brotherhood (forerunner of Hamas), despite the Brotherhood's array of tanks and artillery. The Kibbutz members, along with 59 reinforcements, withstand the even larger assault of the Egyptian 1st Battalion, although most of the buildings were damaged or destroyed, including the synagogue. Miraculously, the wooden ark with the Torah scrolls survives unscathed.
This resistance and, four days later, that of the members of Kibbutz Yad Mordechai just to the north of the Gaza region, arguably saved Israel from instant defeat, and certainly prevented huge civilian casualty figures. |
| July 6, 1948 |
During the first ceasefire of the 1948 War, Egyptian forces regularly sniped at Kfar Darom. Two days before the ceasefire collapses altogether, David Ben Gurion orders Kfar Darom to be abandoned, due to an insufficient number of soldiers and arms, and so the kibbutz is destroyed by the Egyptian army without resistance. Map http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Facts+About+Israel/Israel+in+Maps/
Jewish+Communities+Lost+in+the+War+of+Independence.htm
The members of Kfar Darom found Bnei Darom, a new kibbutz East of Ashdod. |
| Dec. 29, 1948 |
Ben Gurion decides not to retake Gaza for fear of British reprisals, despite Yigal Allon intense pressure as Commander-in-Chief of the Palmach fighting unit and his own understanding of its strategic value. |
| Feb. 21, 1949 |
The term “Gaza Strip” makes its first appearance in The Palestine Post (later called The Jerusalem Post). |
| April 1949 |
After the War of Independence, some 150,000 Arab refugees swell the population of Gaza City and Rafa (Rafiah), from areas now part of central coastal Israel. |
| 1950-1956 |
Egypt organizes fedayeen (guerillas) raids into Israel, many from the Gaza Strip: in thousands of terrorist attacks, hundreds of Israelis are murdered. |
| Nov. 2, 1956 |
Israel conquers Gaza Strip from Egypt during the Sinai Campaign. David Ben Gurion supports permanent retention of the Strip, to shore up Israel's defenses and prevent rampant fedayeen terrorist raids, concurring with Yigal Allon. |
| March 8, 1957 |
Israel withdraws its forces from the Gaza Strip, following US threats to withdraw foreign aid and to support Israel's expulsion from the UN. |
| 1957-1967 |
Terror initially drops, then steadily rises, adding to the tension which culminates in Egypt's closure of the Suez Canal, and soon after, the Six Day War. |
6] Modern Israeli Period (1968-Present)
| Date or Period |
Event |
|---|
| June 6, 1967 |
Gaza Strip conquered by Israel during Six Day War. |
| June 19, 1967 |
Israel's National Unity Government Cabinet decides that the Gaza Strip is an essential security asset, to prevent Egyptian invasion. Possibility of settlement building investigated but not implemented. The Cabinet votes to offer Egypt the Sinai Peninsula, and Syria the Golan Heights, in exchange for peace treaties, should negotiations begin. No decision is reached regarding the West Bank, although Abba Eban tells the UN explicitly that Jerusalem will remain a united city. Israel's offer to enter bilateral negotiations are officially rejected by the Arab states on September 1st at the conclusion to the Khartoum Conference (the "three no's"). |
| June 29, 1967 |
The US Joint Chiefs of Staff issues a memorandum declaring that,
“By occupying the Gaza Strip, Israel would trade approximately 45 miles of hostile border for eight. Configured as it is, the Strip serves as a salient for introduction of Arab subversion and terrorism, and its retention would be to Israel's military advantage.” |
| May 9, 1968 |
Yigal Allon, Minister of Immigrant Absorption, recommended that two settlements be built between Rafah and Gaza City, but the idea was shelved for two years.
Allon stated that, “These settlements [will] have important political significance in that they would separate Gaza City from the southern Gaza Strip. Likewise, there is great significance for security in having Jews living in the heart of Gaza.” |
| January 1970 |
Partially in response to the rising attacks, the Government of Israel formally accepted the “Plan of Fingers”, for five settlement blocs throughout the Gaza Strip and into the Sinai Peninsula:
(1) to the north of Gaza City;
(2) to the south of Gaza City;
(3) in the central Gaza Strip;
(4) in the southern Gaza Strip;
(5) along the northern coast of the Sinai Peninsula. |
| Feb. 24, 1970 |
At a Settlement Committee meeting, Yigal Allon presented a plan for two settlements near the Egyptian border.
General Shlomo Gazit, IDF Coordinator of Activities in the Territories, opposed the plan, recommending military attacks against Palestinian targets;
General Ariel Sharon, Head of the Southern Command, was strongly in favor, calling the building of security settlements, “the Solution, with an emphasis on the the”. |
| Oct. 11, 1970 |
The groundwork was laid for the rebuilding of Kfar Darom in the central Gaza Strip. |
| October 6, 1973 |
On Yom Kippur, Israel is simultaneously invaded by Egypt and Syria. The speed with which Egyptian forces cross the Suez Canal and penetrate into the Sinai Peninsula underscores the value of the Gaza Strip in distancing Egyptian forces from the heart of Israel's population, should Israel withdraw from the Sinai Peninsula. |
| April 25, 1982 |
The community of Yamit in the northern Sinai Peninsula is evacuated as part of the Egypt-Israel peace treaty. Many of its members move to the northern Gaza Strip and found Elei Sinai. Ariel Sharon gives personal assurances that they will never have to move again. |
| March 22, 1988 |
Then Foreign Minister Shimon Peres states,
“To just get up and leave Gaza would be a mistake and a scandal. It would create a chaotic situation, a situation like Lebanon; I don’t suggest we take such a step.” |
| Sept. 13, 1993 |
Israel and the PLO sign the Oslo Accords, setting in motion a course of Israeli withdrawals from the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and the establishment of a Palestinian Authority controlled by the PLO. |
| May 4, 1994 |
The Gaza-Jericho Agreement is signed by Israel and the PLO. Israel pulls out of most of the Gaza Strip. The interior perimeter of one kilometer becomes an Israeli-controlled buffer zone. Israel retains control of the Gaza Strip-Egypt border (the Philadelphia Route), as well as areas around the Israeli communities.
Before and during December 2003 Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon announces a government policy based on his Disengagement Plan, for complete military and civilian withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. It undergoes revision. [History of the Disengagement]
During this period, the Israeli settlements and northern Negev town of Sderot come under mortar fire. |
| June 6, 2004 |
The Knesset passes the Disengagement Law, making the Disengagement Plan the Government's official policy. |
| Feb. 8, 2005 |
Israeli PM Ariel Sharon meets with PA Chairman Abu Abbas and agrees that the PA will be responsible for providing security and preventing attacks. |
| Feb. 10, 2005 |
Approximately 40 mortars are fired at Gush Katif. Israel calls on the PA act. |
| Feb. 18, 2005 |
The Knesset passes the Disengagement Plan Implementation Law, also known as the Evacuation-Compensation Law. Compensation, although higher than previous levels, does not reflect the real value of homes/businesses, loss of livelihood, cost of temporary housing, psychological trauma, and more. Map:
http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Facts+About+Israel/
Israel+in+Maps/Gaza.htm |
| April 10-11, 2005 |
Over 100 mortars and Kassam rockets are fired at Gush Katif. The Ministry of Defense directs the IDF to withhold all fire, while the Government seeks a diplomatic solution. |
E. Palestinian Population
1] 19th and early 20th Century:
Please Note:
- Historical figures for the Gaza Strip during this period are not accurate, partly because this area was combined into a larger administrative unit prior to 1949, and partly because interpretation of population statistics is often politically motivated. One of the most objective historical demographic studies was prepared by Yehoshua Ben-Arieh. Data for Gaza City below (Arabs and Jews) are based on his review of hundreds of first-hand reports, as well as Ottoman and British censuses.
- Prior to the creation of the Gaza Strip refugee camps, areas South of Gaza City were generally unpopulated, with only a few hundred residents in towns, such as Rafah (Rafiah) and Khan Yunis:
| Total Population (incl. Jews) |
|---|
| Year |
Gaza City Population |
Estimated Gaza Strip Population (+10%) |
|---|
| 1800 |
8,000 |
8,800 |
| 1840 |
12,000 |
13,200 |
| 1860 |
15,000 |
16,500 |
| 1880 |
19,000 |
20,900 |
| 1922 |
17,500 |
19,250 |
2] From 1946 to the Present:
The following chart is based on British, Israeli, and Palestinian population censuses:
*1967 Israeli census.
**Disputed data: Current figures appear higher than 1967 Israeli demographic projections: they are based on 1997 PA projections, not a statistical census
http://www.fafo.no/PUB/rapp/242/Kap2.htm .
E. References
English
Ariel Center for Policy Research
http://www.acpr.org.il/cloakrm/clk165.html
Foundation for Middle East Peace
Chart of population and founding dates
http://www.fmep.org/database/gaza.html
Hof Aza (Gaza Coast) Regional Council
List of communities
http://www.hebron.com/guskatif/aboutgkatif.htm
International Society for Sephardic Progress
History of Gaza
http://isfsp.org/gaza.html
Israel Hasbara Committee
History of the Gaza Strip, list of Israeli communities:
http://www.infoisrael.net/cgi-local/text.pl?source=3/e/280420041
Israel Ministry for Foreign Affairs
Maps
http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Facts+About+Israel/Israel+in+Maps/
Jewish Virtual Library
Suez Crisis, 1956
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/Suez_War.html
Gaza Strip maps, information
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Peace/gazatoc.html
Josephus
Gaza City and Rafiah
http://www.godrules.net/library/flavius/flaviusb21c4.htm
Writings of Josephus
http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/JOSEPHUS.HTM
Mid East Web
Pre-1948 Palestinian population figures, charts, sources
http://www.mideastweb.org/palpop.htm
Palestine Post (Jerusalem Post) Archives (1932-1950)
http://jic.tau.ac.il/Archive/skins/PalestineP/navigator.asp?AW=1105670386859
Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gush_Katif
Yesha Communities
http://www.geocities.com/m_yericho/katif.htm
Yeshiva University
History of the Gaza Strip:
http://www.yucommentator.com/news/2004/02/17/Israel/
A.Brief.History.Of.The.Gaza.Strip-609086.shtml
Hebrew
Katif Net
Hebrew website article on the history of Gush Katif (no English version currently):
http://www.katif.net/history.php
Hebrew webpage on the settlements in the Gaza Strip:
http://www.katif.net/gush/city/
Hebrew Wikipedia article (search from main page if it doesn't load):
http://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%92%D7%95%D7%A9_%D7%A7%D7%98%D7%99%D7%A3
Bibliography
Encyclopedia Judaica, articles on Gaza, Gaza Strip, Philistines
Jewish Travelers in the Middle Ages, edited by Elkan Nathan Adler
Early Travels in Palestine, edited by Thomas Wright
The Jews of Arab Lands, written and edited by Norman A. Stillman
Genesis 1948, Dan Kurzman
Studies on Palestine During the Ottoman Period, Moshe Maoz
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