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Zikim

Coordinates: 31°36′28″N 34°31′18″E / 31.60778°N 34.52167°E / 31.60778; 34.52167
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This article is about the Israeli kibbutz. For the Israel Defense Forces base nearby, see Bahad 4.
Zikim
זִיקִים‎
زيكيم
Kibbutz Zikim in August 2023
Kibbutz Zikim in August 2023
Zikim is located in Ashkelon region of Israel
Zikim
Zikim
Zikim is located in Israel
Zikim
Zikim
Coordinates: 31°36′28″N 34°31′18″E / 31.60778°N 34.52167°E / 31.60778; 34.52167
Country Israel
DistrictSouthern
CouncilHof Ashkelon
AffiliationKibbutz Movement
Founded1949
Founded byRomanian Hashomer HaTzair Members
Population
 (2022)[1]
918
Websitewww.zikim.org.il
Zikim beach
Kibbutz Zikim in 1956
Old house on the hill above the kibbutz

Zikim (Hebrew: זִיקִים) is a kibbutz in southern Israel. Located in the northern Negev desert, it falls under the jurisdiction of Hof Ashkelon Regional Council. In 2022, it had a population of 918.[1]

History

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For settlement history preceding the kibbutz, see Hiribya: History. Ancient discoveries in Zikim comprise a Greek graffito on the base of a high-quality plate dating from 144-160 BCE, and Greek inscriptions on Gazan jars from the 6th to early 7th century CE.[2]

The kibbutz was established in 1949 on land that had belonged to the depopulated Palestinian village of Hiribya,[3] by a group of young Romanian Jews who belonged to Hashomer Hatzair before their arrival in Mandatory Palestine in 1947.[citation needed]

At that time, Jewish settlement in the Negev was very sparse, and each new location was considered to be a "point of light" (zik) in the wilderness. Michael Har-Segor, later an Israeli historian, came up with the name while imprisoned in Romania for his activity in Hashomer Hatzair. He says he translated a quote from Pushkin into Hebrew: "From sparks shall come a flame."[4]

Zikim attracted members of Hashomer Hatzair from around the world, most recently from South America. British actor Bob Hoskins, although not Jewish, worked as a volunteer in Zikim in 1967.[5]

In 2006, Palestinian Islamic Jihad fired a Qassam rocket from northern Gaza that hit a mattress factory in Zikim.[6] In July 2014, five armed Palestinians attempted to cross into Israel via the beach at Kibbutz Zikim. They were killed by IDF gunfire.[7]

On 7 October 2023, as part of an attack on Israel, Hamas amphibiously assaulted the Zikim training base and Zikim kibbutz.[8] Hamas killed 19 civilians,[9] 8 soldiers and left dozens wounded on the beach.[10][11][12] The remaining Hamas fighters from the beach were killed while attempting to enter the kibbutz. An emergency security team made up of civilians there had been alerted to the infiltration by the navy, and preemptively positioned themselves along a fence surrounding the kibbutz.[13][14] A squad of six Hamas militants arrived at the kibbutz driving the Israeli military vehicle that had been abandoned on the beach. A firefight quickly ensued, and the militants dispersed, eventually being tracked down and killed after about an hour of combat.[14][15][16] The security team remained at their positions until 2:30 the next morning, assisting in the evacuation of civilians and awaiting IDF reinforcements that never arrived.[16]

Economy

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The main crops are mango and avocado. Zikim also operates one of Israel's largest dairy farms. The main industrial product is polyurethane, produced by the kibbutz factory, Polyrit.[17]

Notable people

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Regional Statistics". Israel Central Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
  2. ^ "XIX. Ziqim", Volume 3 South Coast: 2161-2648, De Gruyter, pp. 367–370, 2014-07-14, doi:10.1515/9783110337679.367, ISBN 978-3-11-033767-9, retrieved 2024-02-25
  3. ^ Khalidi, Walid (1992). All That Remains: The Palestinian Villages Occupied and Depopulated by Israel in 1948. Washington D.C.: Institute for Palestine Studies. p. 102. ISBN 0-88728-224-5.
  4. ^ Past Perfect Archived 2009-12-19 at the Wayback Machine Haaretz; accessed 20 May 2018.
  5. ^ Yaakov, Yifa (May 1, 2014). "Bob Hoskins, kibbutz volunteer". The Times of Israel. Associated Press. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  6. ^ Katz, Yaakov (April 6, 2006). "Kassam hits factory in Kibbutz Zikim". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  7. ^ Lappin, Yaakov (July 8, 2014). "WATCH: IDF kills 5 Hamas terrorists attempting to infiltrate from the sea". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  8. ^ "Videos show new details on how Hamas launched surprise assault on Israel". CNN. 2023-10-09. Retrieved 2023-10-09.
  9. ^ קוריאל, אילנה (2023-11-04). "אלינה בילתה עם חבריה, אריה ואלי יצאו לדוג: 19 נרצחו בחוף זיקים במתקפת הפתע". Ynet (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2023-11-27.
  10. ^ "קומץ מפקדים הצילו בגופם 90 טירונים. סיפורו של הקרב ההירואי בזיקים". הארץ (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2023-10-28.
  11. ^ ""חוף זיקים בשבת בבוקר זה חור שחור. לא נוצרה מילה שתתאר את גודל המחדל" - וואלה! חדשות". וואלה! (in Hebrew). 2023-10-12. Retrieved 2023-10-28.
  12. ^ קוריאל, אילנה (2023-10-27). "אריה ובנו אלי נרצחו כשהלכו לדוג בחוף זיקים: "הבנו שצריך רק להמתין לבשורה המרה"". Ynet (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2023-10-28.
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference bohbot1127 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ a b "Eyewitness account: 'Kobi and the squad saved the kibbutz'". Arutz Sheva. 8 October 2023. Archived from the original on 11 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  15. ^ "The alertness of the kibbutz's first-response team resulted in the terrorists' elimination". idsf.org.il. 7 October 2023. Archived from the original on 2023-12-05. Retrieved 2023-12-05.
  16. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference hamakom was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ "Contact". Polyron. Polyrit. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
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