Nitzanim () is a kibbutz in southern Israel. Located between Ashkelon and Ashdod on the Nitzanim dunes, it falls under the jurisdiction of Hof Ashkelon Regional Council. In it had a population of .
History
Nitzanim was established on 8 December 1943 on a 400-acre plot of land purchased by the Jewish National Fund in 1942. On the grounds is a large building that became known as the "mansion."Women of Valor Center - Nitzanim. Society for the Preservation of Israel Heritage sites The first residents were new immigrants, some of them Holocaust survivors.
The kibbutz was bombarded and captured by the Egyptian army during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War in the Battle of Nitzanim. Of Nitzanim's 141 members, 37 were killed and many were taken prisoner.Nitzanim Beach Gems in Israel
Following the war, the kibbutz was moved four kilometres south of the original location,Historical sites in Nitzan Israel Inside Out to a site near the former depopulated Palestinian village of Hamama.
The original site of the kibbutz became Nitzanim Youth Village in 1949. After the youth village closed in 1990, the community settlement of Nitzan was founded there.
See also Nizzanim culture, Neolithic culture named after the type-site at Nitzanim
References
External links Official website (in Hebrew) The Battle of Nitzanim, exhibition in the Ministry of Defense archives