On 30th July 2008, the Knesset passed the The Gush Katif and Northern Samaria Commemoration Center Law, 2008.

Clause 1 of the Law states its goal: “The goal of the law is to establish a center which will commemorate the settlement of Gush Katif and Northern Samaria and pass on a legacy of national and educational values.”

The Law decrees the establishment of a Center to commemorate the legacy of rural development in Gush Katif, which will include a commemoration center, a research institute and an archive.

The Commemoration Center of the Gush Katif legacy will house a permanent exhibition of the development of Gush Katif, including information on the population centers, on the lives of the people and on the struggle with the challenges of the period, and will regularly arrange memorial and educational activities in these areas.

The Center will establish a Research Institute, which will work to deepen, enrich and impart knowledge pertaining to settlement in Gush Katif and its legacy, including information about the communities, the lives of the people who lived there and the struggles with the challenges of the period. The Institute will hold activities to promote the goals of this Law, including study groups, research seminars, public lectures and conventions. The Institute will maintain and operate a research library in the areas of activity, will publicize these activities as well as build and operate an Internet website which will disseminate information about the activities of the Center.

The Center will run an Archive under the guidance and support of the State Archive and the Association of Archivists and will initiate the collection of material documenting life in Gush Katif and Northern Samaria.