3 4 1 2 82 83 Chapter Five | The Se�lements Kerem Atzmona A trailer neighborhood of the se�lement of Atzmona, which belonged to the movement 'Amana' Se�lement Movement Kerem Atzmona was a trailer neighborhood near Moshav Atzmona. In the summer of 5760 (2000), during the Camp David summit, where Ehud Barak proposed to Yasser Arafat a permanent agreement including a complete withdrawal from the Gaza Strip,1 the children of Atzmona, graduates of the 7th, 8th and 9th grades, held a camp on top of an abandoned dune near their se�lement, which dominated the en�re surroundings. Many years prior to that, when the Gaza Strip was s�ll an Egyp�an territory, there was an experimental government agricultural farm in this area, between Khan Yunis and Rafah. The residents of Atzmona s�ll had the change to get to know Hassan the guard personally, a�er moving to the place. 2 Even when the agricultural farm disappeared, an area of about 6 hectares of state lands remained, which could be used for se�lement purposes. On the old se�lement maps, this area was marked as a se�lement called Ka�f H. It was the only place in Gush Ka�f with real soil, and not sand. The place s�ll features the remains of the well from the Egyp�an �mes as well as the pump. When the se�lers of Atzmona moved to their permanent place (23rd of Adar 5747; 03/24/1987), a�er many hardships and wanderings through temporary sites, they planted a vineyard instead. On its side, at the edge of the area, an avocado orchard was planted. But a year later, the Arabs of the region sabotaged the vineyard and the planta�on, and the place was abandoned. A decade had passed, and in 1998, as a response to the Wye River Memorandum, a nucleus of about five families of Atzmona veterans was formed, which sought to se�le on the old Egyp�an farm site. The idea, for various reasons, did not come to frui�on. This is how the idea of redeeming the abandoned dune came to the children of Atzmona. When they saw that the summer camp was successful, they held a week-long seminar in a yeshiva format. Rabbi Dov Lior of Kiryat Arba and other rabbis from Gush Ka�f came to teach Torah and lecture. Following them, the first container was brought to the vineyard, which was used as the camp's offices, a room for instructors and a synagogue. A lonely container on the Atzmona dune. An old dream of Atzmona Chaim Albert: It was a long forgo�en dream of Atzmona, to fill the slot between them and Morag, where a vineyard was planted. We paved a road that shortened the route to Morag, and we naturally realized that if Jews would not live there, the state's lands there could become part of poli�cal plans, and would be handed over to the Pales�nians as a tribute. We wanted to establish a fact on the ground. The effort was all mine and my wife's. The Oslo War had started in the area, and destroyers whistled above us. We returned to our home in Atzmona only a�er there were already twelve families in Kerem Atzmona, and felt redundant. At the beginning of Elul of 5760 (September 2000) Chaim and Shoshana Albert from Atzmona went up to the isolated container of 'Kerem Atzmona' (as the place has been called ever since). They lived alone for a whole month, in a container that served as offices. On weekends, they had many guests who came to complete the quorum (Minyan), Atzmona youth and three regular guests: Their son, Hanoch Albert, his wife Hodaya and Uri Eitam. On Rosh Hashanah 5761 (10/01/2000), as they stood engrossed in prayer with youths from Atzmona who came to complete a quorum, sounds of explosions began to horrify the surroundings, and smoke began to billow from all sides. A security jeep of the council that arrived at the scene, called Elyashiv Amitai from Morag. This is how they learned that the Second In�fada had broken out. The army wanted to evacuate them from the place. Chaim and Shoshana refused. The IDF insisted. A�er two weeks, the IDF won. The family le� the place. Kerem Atzmona was abandoned. For several weeks, the container in Kerem Atzmona remained abandoned, except for the occasional presence of the Albert family. From �me to �me, they deliberately came to have dinner in the container of Kerem Atzmona, but were greated with a brand new, white container that 'Amana' had brought to the place, which had previously been used as the offices of Slav. The idea was to let no one think the place has been abandoned for good. The problem was guarding it. The IDF did not allow them to stay unprotected, but was not ready to allocate the necessary forces. On Tu B'Shevat 5761 (02/08/2001) Chaim and Shoshana, and Hanoch and Hodaya set facts on the ground: They arrived at the container determined to stay the night. A few minutes later, the Company Commander arrived at the scene in a jeep: "What are you doing here?" "Ge�ng ready to sleep," Chaim Albert replied calmly. "And who is guarding you?" inquired the Company Commander. "I don't know," replied Chaim Albert truthfully. The officer immediately called headquarters and demanded that a guard be sent. "If there are Jews here, they need protec�on," he explained. From that day on, a fact was established: Kerem Atzmona is not vaca�ng. From that night onward, IDF soldiers arrived every evening to secure the new point. Tu B'Shevat 5761 (01/08/2001) was set as the date of the arrival of the se�lers to Kerem Atzmona. Thus, a sequence of se�lements was established between Morag and the rest of Gush Ka�f.3 Shortly a�er, a third family arrived.4 In the summer of 5762, eight families resided in Kerem Atzmona.5 The Albert family, father and son, were joined by families who came through the 'Torat HaHaim' yeshiva led by Rabbi Tal. The place suited them. It was a group who sought a�er silence and solitude to engage in the Torah. Atzmona helped financially as much as it could un�l the se�lement reached independence and could deal with its problems on its own.6 Most of the residents of the se�lement studied at the Torah ins�tu�ons in Gush Ka�f.7 In the summer of 5763 (2003), 13 families resided there.8 At the beginning of that year, the Ministry of Housing completed the planning of the neighborhood: 50 housing units in the first phase.9 In 5764 (2004), the planning of the place was completed. The plan for the permanent se�lement incorporated 75 housing units, including a mikveh, a synagogue, three daycare classes, a kindergarten and more. In the future, according to the plans, the Kerem Atzmona neighborhood was supposed to be an independent se�lement. 10 In Av of 5765 (August 2005), 18 families resided in Kerem Atzmona. The neighborhood residents were evacuated from their homes on the first evacua�on day, 22nd of Av 5765 (08/17/2005)11. 1 Aerial photograph of Kerem Atzmona 2 A view at the trailers 3 On the lawn of the se�lement 4 A trailer - a closer look
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