3 4 12 84 85 Chapter Five | The Se�lements Shirat HaYam A religious trailer neighborhood on the seashore near Neve Dekalim, which belonged to the 'Amana' Se�lement Movement Like Kfar Yam, Shirat HaYam was also established based on a row of houses on the seashore that used to belong to the Egyp�an government in the distant past, and served as a convalescence home for Egyp�an officers.1 The trailers on Neve Dekalim beach were se�led on the 22nd of Cheshvan 5761 (11/20/2000) as a Zionist response to the murderous terrorist a�ack on Kfar Darom's children's bus, that occurred that same morning. The night a�er the a�ack, the Security Cabinet approved entering into the "ten houses" that have been derelict since the �me of Egyp�an rule, before 1967. The ini�al nucleus began to form under the guidance of Roni Salah (May God Avenge His Death), a resident of adjacent Kfar Yam. The Gaza Coast Regional Council quickly brought young people from the "Torat Ha'im" yeshiva in Neve Dekalim, and with them, teens who were mobilized that day to 'hold the fort.' An army jeep arrived to secure the new se�lers. Oz and Osnat Levran were the first family in the new se�lement, which did not yet have a name. They entered one of the ruins, which used to be a luxurious holiday home and now was without electricity, water and other infrastructure, cleaned everything that could be cleaned, spread ma�resses on the floor and lay down to sleep.2 In the morning there were about 30 people, most of them young, who started pain�ng the walls on the outside. One of the buildings was converted into a temporary synagogue, and the young people, yeshiva students and Ulpana students from Neve Dekalim, began to study Torah lessons. This was the situa�on in the early days: One couple and 20 or 30 single individuals who came and gone, studied and le�. The Ulpana girls turned the place into an alterna�ve classroom. Each �me, a class arrived for a whole morning or a�ernoon classes. Bnei Akiva members also came and held their ac�vi�es there. Later in the first week, a generator, water tank and chemical toilets were brought in. Finally, the se�lers began to feel like a real se�lement, but as living condi�ons improved, the number of residents decreased. A�er a month, it stabilized on four permanent residents. From Miri Amitai's funeral I came directly to the houses on the beach Osnat Levran: On the morning of the a�ack on Kfar Darom children's bus, I was in Jerusalem when I heard the terrible news from the Gaza Strip. I called my husband, Oz, who was on his way to his yeshiva studies in the se�lement of Eli, and told him that the ground was on fire and that we couldn't remain indifferent, that something had to be done, but even I did not have a clear vision of what exactly needed to be done. That day in the a�ernoon, Oz received another call, this �me from Ahrale Tzur, the Head of Council in those days. Ahrale knew that Oz had a personal obsession - to live on the beach. "You have an opportunity to try and establish something new" - he told him - "come to the beach with the ten houses near Kfar Yam, and we'll see what happens." From Miri Amitai's funeral in Ofra, I came directly to the ten houses on Neve Dekalim's beach. Oz came a�er me. That's how we were the first family in Shirat HaYam. At the beginning of Shevat 5761 (end of January 2001) the first four trailers were brought on site. On the Tu B'Shevat 5761 (02/08/2001) the second family arrived, Hana and Michael Picard from Neve Dekalim. This is how the neighborhood came to be. A�er the council began refurbishing the trailers, more families began to flow in. The neighbourhood did not yet have a name, un�l one of the residents suggested the name 'Shirat HaYam' (Song of the Sea). From that day on, the residents celebrated the Shirat HaYam's anniversary on Shabbat Shira, before Tu B'Shevat. The first person to acompany Shirat HaYam on behalf of the council was Roni Salah (May God Avenge His Death). On the 20th of Tevet 5761 (01/15/2001) Roni was murdered in the greenhouses where he worked. His body was found only the next day. A significant religious invigora�on occurred in the place a�er his death as part of the desire to prove to the murderers that their plot to uproot the se�lers would not succeed, and every such murder only for�fied the se�lement. Every Saturday there was a 'Roni March' in memory of Roni Salah. Dozens of residents from Neve Dekalim marched to Shirat HaYam, had some light refreshments, stayed for an hour at noon and returned to Neve Dekalim. This prac�ce con�nued un�l the army forbade them to come for security reasons, a�er an explosive device was discovered on the road. What enchanted the new se�lers of Shirat HaYam more than anything else was the possibility to leave their house wearing a bathing suit, walk a few steps, dip in the refreshing water, and return straight to a morning cup of coffee at home. 3 In Tishrei of 5763 (September 2002), a dozen families lived in Shirat Hayam.4 1 Aerial photograph of Shirat HaYam 2 A playground in the se�lement 3 A street in the se�lement 4 Osnat Lev Ran with her daughter
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