Twenty Years Since Disengagement- Deja Vu- The Elephant in The Room

From my blog post Opening Old Wounds, Disengagement, Part 1

There have been so many articles and youtube videos about Disengagement in the media. They mention all aspects of it, and I didn't notice any claiming that it had been a good policy decision. Thank Gd for that. 

I wrote a "letter to the editor" to the Jerusalem Post concerning the articles I had read in the paper and the magazine. This post is based on that letter which, as of today, hadn't been published. 

I was very pleased/impressed by the great variety and quantity of articles in last Friday's paper about twenty years since Disengagement, but maybe I missed something. It's a very big elephant in the room, especially for someone who has lived in Israel since 1970. I'm referring to Menachem Begin's "Camp David Accords," which is to blame for Israel's withdrawal from the Sinai and the total destruction of all Israeli communities, Yamit and others there. Disengagement was clearly modeled on it, and both Begin and Arik Sharon were Prime Ministers from the Likud. Yes, just like the Likud elections slogan: "Only the Likud Can Do It." Voluntarily destroying Jewish communities, especially agricultural ones, had been a "red line" for the Labor Party. 

Close to a half century after Menachem Begin proudly announced his "achievement," I still consider it the most insanely dangerous decision in Israeli history. As we've seen since then, Israel doesn't know how to negotiate wisely. Why didn't he insist on keeping all of the moshavim and towns in Sinai as proof of peace?

Menachem Begin, Ariel Sharon and Binyamin Bibi Netanyahu were/are plagued/cursed with a desire to show the world that they're reasonable moderates and as a result they do what they consider "diplomatic," generous endangering the security and existence of the State of Israel. 

I'll never forget Begin's speech afterward the withdrawal/destruction of Jewish communities in which he claimed that the remaining and new Israeli communities in Gaza and nearby would be forever, fully recognized forever by the world as part of Israel. 

Gush Katif was to be the replacement of the Sinai for Jewish settlement. For example, Neve Dekalim was named for the destroyed Moshav Dikla. 

Twenty plus years ago, I was incredulous that the anti-Disengagement organizers didn't use Begin's speech in the campaign. I tried to contact them about it but failed.

Tzachi Hanegbi, whose mother Geula Cohen left the Likud over the withdrawal, described the agreement as the precedent for legitimizing Disengagement.

For many of us, the scars of Begin's Sinai withdrawal have only gotten more prominent with Disengagement and Bibi's unending destruction of Jewish communities throughout Judea and Samaria.

“Dirat Arai”: The ‘Temporary’ Succa by Hadassa DeYoung, K’far Darom/Elon Moreh

בעז"ה

“Dirat Arai”: The ‘Temporary’ Succa

What was it like living in Gush Katif? I’ve been asked that question countless times. Answering it doesn’t get any easier. Stories are a good way of relating events so that’s what my writings commemorating the anniversary of the Expulsion are usually are. Succot in Gush Katif was a special holiday, in many ways, from the neighbors helping us buy and transport the succa parts to tear gas meant for rioting Arabs interrupting our meals to wondering if mortars launched from Dir-el-Balah were going to prevent us from fulfilling the mitzva of sitting in the succa.

Like many couples my husband and I married in Elul, not long before the High Holidays. We arrived in Netzer Hazani about a week after our wedding. Unlike most couples in Israel we couldn’t pack our bags, catch a ride and spend the holidays with family. We were ‘alone’ – although one is never really alone in Israel - and celebrating the holidays with friends who were in exactly our situation didn’t appeal to us so we decided to stay home. For Rosh HaShana we received more invitations than there were meals and even we also received an invitation for before the Yom Kippur fast. All that was left was the matter of building a Succa, known as a “dirat arai”, a temporary dwelling built especially for only the week of Succot.

Time passed and we still hadn’t purchased a Succa. Yom Kippur passed and I began to seriously worry. Succot would begin in only a few days and I had no idea how we were going to acquire a Succa. Fortunately immediately after Yom Kippur as we were having the fast-breaking meal siata d’shaimaya (help from Heaven) arrived. A neighbor pulled up next to our house, honked his horn and shouted, “Uri! Come! I’ll take you to Neve Dekalim and you’ll buy yourself a Succa.” He not only took my husband to Neve Dekalim but also vouched for us. We didn’t have enough cash on hand and the checkbooks hadn’t arrived yet. I guess the kind neighbor figured that without family in Israel or a car or checks we wouldn’t be running away too quickly. They returned from Neve Dekalim, the generous neighbor helped Uri start the building the succa and then he apologized (!) for having to go home and build his own succa.

Two years later we headed for the young community of K’far Darom, once again moving right before Succot. We packed up the minivan, drove to our caravan and began to unpack. A smiling grandfather stepped out of the neighboring caravan and greeted us. “Shalom, I’m Chana Cohen’s father. Welcome! Do you need any help?” We turned down the offer, not wanting to inconvenience our new neighbors and said that we’d manage. After about half an hour he returned, looked at us, up and down, and insisted. “Take care of your home. I’ll build the succa with my grandchildren.” He said and he did.

Years passed and on the year celebrating 50 years to the founding of old K’far Darom we sat in the Succa, “under siege”– roads were closed because of the security situation – thinking about how the original founders of K’far Darom were literally under siege during the War of Independence.

Four years later the rioting and attacks began on Rosh HaShana, the attacks that would only increase until the Expulsion, after which the terrorists would increase their attacks on the rest of the Negev, once the Jews were forcibly removed from Gush Katif. The Arabs rioted close to K’far Darom’s fence and the tear gas blew into our yard and our eyes. As the holiday of Succot drew near neither the riots nor the tear gas had stopped. During Succot we took wet towels into the succa with us, for relief from the tear gas until we could run inside. Once we didn’t take wet towels with us and we started to think that maybe tear gas was wafting in our direction. I didn’t say a word, but my three year old daughter announced that, “We should have brought towels!”

By the next year we already had to keep our ear attuned to the sound of mortar launches and announcements of “purple rain”, the code for falling mortars. “Color red” warnings were rare. Almost always the mortars had already been launched before the army could warn us. We sat in the succa, like anyone else celebrating the holiday, but our conversations were a bit different.

"A mortar fell. Let’s go inside”

"No it didn’t. We’ll stay in the Succa.”

"Ima (mom)! A mortar fell!”

I wasn’t convinced but just to be on the safe side we went inside. Later I learned that a mortar had directly hit our neighbor two doors to the left. Their second, completely unfinished, story suffered a direct hit to a corner, leaving a gaping hole. Fortunately the family wasn’t home that day.

Years passed and the Arabs of Dir-el-Balah continued to launch mortars. Not only the security situation but also our metal frame and nylon walled succa began to heat up too much. “We should buy a succa in which it’s pleasant to sit,” I suggested. My husband reminded me that we didn’t have a car – which we didn’t at the time – and how was he supposed to bring wooden succa walls home. I didn’t back down. “Do we lack neighbors with large vehicles?” My husband was convinced and bought succa walls, once again in Neve Dekalim. We waited again for siata d’shamaya, which wasn’t long in coming.

Several days later the phone rang and on the line was our closest neighbor. “Shalom, – speaking I’m at – and I see succa walls with DeYoung marked on them. Would you like them?” Absolutely. We received our succa walls at our doorstep and our neighbor had the mitzva of bringing them to us.

We sat in that succa three times in K’far Darom. Then it, the ‘dirat arai’ was loaded into a shipping container with the rest of our belongings and our ‘permanent’ house was razed to the ground. The succa remained in the hot, stuffy container for a bit longer than a year until in the mountain air of Elon Moreh it was built, once again according to our custom, by a new neighbor we’d barely met.

We managed to move once more, to a new house in Elon Moreh, right before Succot and we’re still waiting to move again, with the succa back to K’far Darom.

At this time of year when we remember the destruction of Beit HaMikdash and for us the more personal destruction of Gush Katif and the northern Shomron, particularly K’far Darom I think about the upcoming Succot holiday. We moved four times right before Succot, and we have plenty of time to return to K’far Darom, with that ‘temporary’ “dirat arai”, by the holiday, if we don’t merit the rebuilding of Beit HaMikdash and going up to Jerusalem by then.

Hadassa DeYoung, K’far Darom/Elon Moreh

A journey into Gush Katif

A journey into Gush Katif
by Sara Layah Shomron


Seize the opportunity to read an authentic Gush Katif expellee’s first-hand survivor’s account.

This blog post is in response to a recent email I received which reads in part, “I was in Jerusalem a few weeks ago, for the first time in... too long to remember... and I saw Shifra's book nicely displayed in a store. I love that beach scene on the cover. It's rather sad that pictures and memories all we have now. I wish I could visit you there again. The beach at Nitzan just doesn't do it. Anyway, how is the book, and of course Shifra, doing?”

I thought other readers and potential readers would also be interested in knowing that Grains Of Sand The Fall Of Neve Deklim is on the radar screen.

As a pro-Zionist, historically accurate fiction novel written out of a deep love for Israel, "Grains Of Sand" “…vividly awakens dormant memories of the expulsion of 2005.” It is a powerful survival account written by Shifra Shomron, a teen raised in Gush Katif.

“Grains Of Sand” has worldwide distribution via Mazo Publishers. Here's what some readers of diverse ethnic, age, and religious backgrounds who live in various countries have to say:

• …"Grains of Sand," the best book I have read in recent years. Once I started reading it I couldn't put it down until I was finished. It's just that good.”
Tom Blalock, (Sept. 2, 2011).

• “I had the same experience, Tom, a real eye-opener by an GK insider - a teenager yet! I learned so much about what was actually going on, not only in GK, but also in the government, media and courts, versus the propaganda that was being spread then...and now.” Janet Clare, (Sept. 2, 2011).

• 2. "To get a more personal understanding of the expulsion
You should read Shifra Shomron's book, Grains of Sand: The Fall of Neve Dekalim. Shifra also keeps a blog My Voice In Israel, which would answer your question at least for one young woman..." Rachel Ann, (July 29, 2011).

• 5. "Right #2 One of those Neve Dekalim girls wrote of it's fall.
I'll give "Grains of Sand: The Fall of N. D." a recommendation too since Shifra Shomron's book is my prized possession for an inside look at GK life before and during the Israel government's crime against its own people. Thank G, Shifra, her parents, siblings and many friends are of great character and have coped with this tragedy. For most of us, the wound hasn't healed, because the govt. hasn't wised up. Never again should a Jewish family hear a battering at their door of expulsion troops!"
Hilltop Savta, (July 29, 2011).

• "This novel furthers the hope of understanding the massive injustice that occurred in 2005... Grains of Sand reminds us that real families and real citizens suffered in 2005 and continue to suffer..."
Menachem, (July 11, 2011).

• “…There is great pathos in the descriptions and the book is a 'must' for people everywhere must be educated about this sad part of our recent history in order to prevent it reoccurring….” Esther Revivo, (July 10, 2011).

• “…Shifra, though, goes beyond mere political commentary and even examines the psychology of denial of many of the soon-to-be expellees…”
Ra’anan, (July 3, 2011).

• “…I found the author's personal and convincing writing style very appealing and touching to read. Grains Of Sand gave me a real feel for the people through the book's characters. Now I wonder, how are the actual people coping?”
David, (July 2, 2011).

• “…If you want an inside peek at the real people of Israel, Grains of Sand" is an must-read.” Janet, (June 30, 2011).

• “…This book moved me. It has stayed with me daily since finishing it. Everyone should read this book and learn about what happened to the Gush and work towards never letting it happen again anywhere in Israel.The flow of the book was great. It was a well paced and it was very difficult to put down.I could not recommend this book any higher.”
Robert Pepe, (June 30, 2011).

• “An absolutely spellbinding book. One of the best books I’ve ever read… You have to go out and get this book. You’ll see what was going through the minds of people before they were being expelled by their own fellow Jews and the biggest black stain on this country that I’ve ever seen…”
Eliyokim Cohen, book reviewed and excerpts read on fb, Jews News ,
(May 29th - July 22, 2011).

• "This is a very compelling book. There are not many fiction Jewish books out there (books that deal explicitly with Jewish themes) suitable for young adults. Grains of Sand helps to fill this gap. With some editing it has the potential to become a classic of English Jewish literature. This is a perfect text for a classroom setting."
Nehemia Stern, (10 months ago).

• “Elimelech Ben Efraiyam celebrated his Bar Mitzvah shortly after submitting his project: In the Shadow of a World Destroyed, Memories of an Expelled Teenager, based on Shifra Shomron's novel, Grains of Sand. He won for his region in the state-wide competition at Rider University in New Jersey. He was able to celebrate his Bar Mitzvah with a newly gained respect for his Jewish identity, his Land and his People because of the book and a personal connection with its author, Shifra.”
TZOMET FRIK 'N FRAK, (July 17, 2010).

• “… I recommend you read Shomron’s book – it’s a beautifully written, riveting work. Amazingly, Shomron was 19 when she wrote it. She’s a great talent and I look forward to reading her future work.”
Chas Newkey-Burden, (May 26, 2009).

• "Thanks Shifra, for keeping the heart and soul of Gush Katif and your lovely community of Neve Dekalim alive through your words. It is because of your efforts that we first learned of Gush Katif and the August 2005 destruction of these vibrant communities. Thanks for giving us a beautiful window into the place that was GK. For all those wanting to learn more about GK and Neve Dekalim, Shifra's book is a 'must read.'"
rainyseas7

• "Shifra, we're proud of you! You've brought a piece of Gush Katif to those who didn't merit visiting it and keep a bit of it alive for the rest of us. We're looking forward to the sequel when we return home to the Gush!"
Hadassa

• “…One of the very bright spots in this bleak picture is Shifra Shomron, a very talented writer whose lyrical style and depth are rare in one so young. I wish her great success.” Miriam Adahan, Psychologist, Author, and Founder of EMETT (Emotional Maturity Established Through Torah)

• “…And most of all, the psychological message was powerful. All at the same time, it informed me of the happiness of a regular family, moving onto the frustration and anger of that same family, all because of a government that could not sustain itself…”
Flamingnet book reviewer

• “…I believe this book is of value to all readers, since it shows what can happen when political corruption is allowed to overrule the rights of ordinary citizens - even in a democratic country….” L. Sapir, (April 25, 2007).

• “ …Ms. Shomron provides a single, yet telling perspective, that enlivens integrity in us all.” Leanne Olson, (April 9, 2007).

• “…Grains of Sand reads like a young adult novel with a religious orientation, but it is intended for a diverse readership that seeks to deepen its understanding of Gush Katif life. The straightforward, third-person narrative, interspersed with diary entries by the heroine, takes the reader through the ups and downs of the community: the idyllic, happy, tight-knit religious home and community life of the residents; the terrifying intifada that claimed many Jewish lives there; the struggle to enjoy life amid the constant threat of mortar attacks; and the fears and doubts of the community in the year leading up to disengagement....”
Orit Arfa, The Jerusalem Post, (Aug. 16, 2007).

• “... In the final pages, you will find your cheeks wet with tears as you finish the book - fiction that so tragically became fact. Read it - and remember!”
Dvora Waysman, The Jewish Press, (July 4, 2007).

• "... There is no one who could read this book and not be moved. It is an important book as a testimony... lyrically, poetically and innocently recounted."
Rosally Saltsman, Aish.com, (May 20, 2007).
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The book's educational materials include: Literature Study Guide for Grains Of Sand: The Fall of Neve Dekalim, on-line Literature Study Guide slideshare ppt and handouts.

Click on the links for "Grains Of Sand" book information and promotional videos: book details, book excerpt, and book reviews;
“Readers Discuss the Book Grains Of Sand: The Fall Of Neve Dekalim” Part 1 and Part 2; Meet Shifra Shomron, Book Promo

------

As for Shifra, she’s blogging on her site My Voice in Israel, teaching adults English, enrolled in a MA English literature program and continuing on…

Be sure to also check out my blog piece about the Gush Katif fb pages, "Authentic voices from Gush Katif"

Planting Stones: Our Nitzan Synagogue Cornerstone Ceremony

Planting Stones: Our Nitzan Synagogue Cornerstone Ceremony
By Shifra Shomron


I think there were more small children there than anyone else. No matter where I walked they kept running against me, dodging me, bumping into me. A lot of children and a few cute little puppies. Both dashed everywhere, howled, and begged to be picked up. Sadly, they made it difficult to hear the speakers at the synagogue cornerstone ceremony Wednesday, 22 June 2011. Nevertheless, they added a lot of life and gaiety to what otherwise would have been a sentimental and strongly emotional event.

It all started off on a symbolic note when Rabbi Avraham Uchayon placed a fragment of stone from the Neve Dekalim, Gush Katif, synagogue complex into the cornerstone pit. It seemed to me rather like planting a stone seed – water it and it’ll grow and blossom and flourish into a stone building, our new synagogue. But stones don’t grow with water, nor do buildings spring as quickly as plants. Yet the Rabbi gave a touching speech as he stood over the cornerstone. He bid us remember that this synagogue is temporary, because we will yet return to Gush Katif. We wanted to hear that. We needed to hear that. And so we cheered…

However, until that happens, we can be pleased by knowing that the architect of our new synagogue, Prof. David Cassuto, is a very special and talented person and we are allowing him to close a unique personal circle. In his speech, Cassuto told us that his first job upon receiving his degree from the Technion was to design the synagogue for the Nitzanim youth village. Fifty years later, he would be there (here) once again, designing four synagogues for the Gush Katif expellees.

Standing on the stage during the cornerstone ceremony he told us how the army had sent him to photograph the Gush Katif synagogues before their IDF destruction. So he went and saw them. And then he visited with the Pope's representative in Jerusalem and asked how he can stand by and watch holy sites be destroyed. The representative contacted the Pope, who told former PM Ariel Sharon not to destroy the synagogues. Holocaust survivor Cassuto viewed this as a victory – that Jews wouldn't destroy synagogues.

In such an event like a cornerstone celebration it is the small things that matter. The fact that MKs weren't there even though they were invited was shameful, but at least we were there for each other. I saw one middle-aged man put an arm around a friend that he hadn’t seen for a while, dispersed to another Gush Katif community, and walk with him to the corner stone. How often do they speak to each other? Do they manage to call or visit? Or do they, like me, wait for these events to renew acquaintances with former Gush Katif friends? An elderly neighbor of mine with red-dyed hair wandered over greeting people in a friendly but flustered way. Her friend motioned her over and beckoned her to sit beside her. These are the gestures of a community – taking care of each other. Helping one another without strings attached. In short, people who are friendly with other people purely for friendships sake.


Though the band played well, it took a while for dancing to start. In the end, it wasn't until they started an Irish tune that a ring formed; a father started dancing with his children and others joined in. When the chief Rabbi of Hof Aza saw this, he hurried over to join with his usual beaming smile. As I left, I heard the kindergarten children's performance, singing into the microphone. The last act was to be a flag dance.

Though fashioned by a wonderful architect there is still something I'd like to see accomplished: the ark pillars from the Neve Dekalim Ashkenazi synagogue, which were sawn in two in order to fit the pre-fab Caravilla synagogue, need to be made whole once more. Can that be done? I hope so.

But we all have our dreams. We dream to return to Gush Katif. Prof. Cassuto told us that it was his dream to be the architect for the Temple, yet Rav Ovadia Yosef told him that the Temple will descend built from Heaven, but that he shouldn't grieve; every building settles down after a year and needs to be touched-up, and who better than him to 'touch up' the Temple?

The day will come and our dreams will come true.

_____
Shifra Shomron, author of Grains Of Sand The Fall Of Neve Dekalim

ON ASSIGNMENT IN JERUSALEM - INTERVIEW WITH SARA SHOMRON

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On Assignment in Jerusalem
By A. Ozoous
July 17, 2010




INTERVIEW WITH SARA SHOMRON (Pictured)
Publicist for the book GRAINS OF SAND, The Fall of Neve Dekalim, written by her daughter, Shifra Shomron
(For a copy of the book, go to the author’s website for a list of bookstores: Or contact Mazo Publishers; also a Literature Study Guide is available for the book for free downloading. For more information, contact the publicist at publicist.sls@gmail.com)

I caught up with my friend, Sara Shomron, at the Teachers Conference in Jerusalem, doing what she does best – promoting her daughter’s book. If a kid ever wanted a publicist for their book, they couldn’t find a more loyal, dedicated person than a mother like Sara. The following is about a young Jewish boy who received an awakening to his identity & to his Land after accepting the challenge of a school project and a personal encounter with the author of GRAINS OF SAND. I believe this book should be in every family library and every synagogue for the future education of Jewish children and their identity to the real world of Israel & the young people who are in the struggle to keep it a homeland for the Jews. The interview is in Sara Shomron’s own words:

A 7th grade boy in New Jersey was given a history assignment along with his classmates in conjunction with the State History Day Competition. Conflict & Compromise in History was the year’s theme for students 7th grade and up from New Jersey public schools and this Jewish boy in a public school did not know what he was going to do his project on – he had no idea – so he and his mother sat down at the computer and Google-searched for a subject of interest. Mother & son somehow fell into an interview Shifra had given about her book, and he was wild. He couldn’t believe someone close to his age had written a book about the expulsion of Gush Katif.

He had never heard of Gush Katif before. Even his connection to Israel was minimal so he decided it would be a terrific project to do for his class assignment. He got a hold of the book and as part of his research he contacted my daughter Shifra and asked her questions via email, and they corresponded.

For his history assignment he submitted his project and earned the grade of 100. His teacher encouraged him to participate in the state-wide competition of New Jersey in 2008. This 7th grade boy who had not previously heard of Gush Katif now entered his project called: In the Shadow of a World Destroyed, Memories of an Expelled Teenager, based on Shifra Shomron’s novel Grains of Sand, the Fall of Neve Dekalim and on April 30, 2008 this boy heard over the loud speaker, Gush Katif is a winner! He won first place for his entry in this New Jersey state-wide competition for the Southern Regional Division of National History Day Competition at Rider University.

Afterwards, the Northern & Southern State Regional winners were combined to determine who would be the finalist of the state competition. This boy was not a finalist, but several months later, he marked his Bar Mitzvah. At his Bar Mitzvah each and every table at the reception had a name of a destroyed Gush Katif community, because he wanted all the people present to know of and to remember Gush Katif. It wouldn’t have been the same if Gush Katif hadn’t been part of it. He made Gush Katif known and did his best to increase awareness and keep the memory alive of Gush Katif – a young boy who had never heard of it prior to falling into Shifra’s interview and reading her book, the power of the word, the power of the book and the power of the internet.
He has developed an amazing love for Gush Katif, and in particular a love for Israel.

(Name of the boy withheld by request, due to the age of the minor.

For a transcript of his words about the book, go to Gush Katif is a Winner!

Or, he can be heard speaking on UTube: Readers Discuss the Book Grains Of Sand: The Fall Of Neve Dekalim -- Part 2

also view:
Readers Discuss the Book Grains Of Sand: The Fall Of Neve Dekalim -- Part 1

Gush Katif 5th Commemoration Round-up

Gush Katif 5th Commemoration Round-up
by Sara Layah Shomron

This time of year is hard for me, as it has been for the past five years. We're approaching the commemoration of the uprooting from Gush Katif and its destruction. Gush Katif is at the forefront of my mind as memories shadow me, yet time passes and we've tried to progress despite the almost unimaginable loss.


My family is part of the new Neve Dekalim community at Nitzan, not the caravilla site, which we were glad to leave, rather the new Neve Dekalim community adjoining the pre-existing dati-leumi (national religious) Nitzan community. This video (featuring my daughter Nechama!) updates on the various Gush Katif community building projects. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pdxv3I6vww0


I'll be doing a few things to commemorate the uprooting. From July 13th - 15th I'll be attending the International English Teachers' summer conference at the Ramada Hotel in Jerusalem where, as official publicist, I'll promote my daughter Shifra Shomron's book, "Grains of Sand: The Fall of Neve Dekalim" at a display table in the exhibition hall. The book will also be featured in the conference's July 13th poster session, "Teenager's Voice-Grains of Sand: The Fall of Neve Dekalim." I'll give a brief presentation and then Shifra will take the floor. For a sneak preview, please click on the link to our poster session's handout: http://www.slideshare.net/ETAI2010/teenagers-voice-grains-of-sand-the-fall-of-neve Click on zoom+ (directly below the bottom of the handout page) to enlarge the print. It is especially exciting to see that Gush Katif is represented at this very important international conference.


My family will also be participating in some of the 70 Gush Katif commemoration events planned throughout the country. We invite you to join us. Please mark your calendar and look to attend. For a memorial event near you, contact the Gush Katif Committee, tel. (08) 973-8000, or the new English language website, www.gushkatif.org which is worth a look even after the events are over.


The last two items below are posted on the INN Facebook discussion section. I encourage you to let people know what you are doing to mark the 5th commemoration:
http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=102510354100&topic=15332


1) Monday, 12 July, at 20:00, at the Petach Tikva Sharet Hall, next to the Municipality of Petah Tikva:
The program is in Hebrew. Rabbi Raffi Peretz of the Atzmona Mechina and Anita Tucker from Netzer Hazani.


2) Thursday, 15 July, from 19:30-21:15, at the OU Center, Jerusalem.
(22 Keren Hayesod Street):
A program especially created for English speakers will take place next week, Thursday, 15 July, from 19:30-21:15, at the OU Center, Jerusalem. It will feature speakers Dror Vanunu, International Coordinator of the Gush Katif Fund and Rachel Saperstein, Director of Operation Dignity. An exclusive film produced by the Gush Katif Committee will be shown. This is one of 70 such events taking place across the country.


3) Thursday, 22 July, from 15:00-21:00, at the OU Center, Jerusalem:
Exactly one week later at the same venue, a special event SALUTING YESHA ARTISTS will take place, G-d willing, with the majority of the artists participating being former residents of GUSH KATIF. The occasion will also serve as a benefit for the organization HONENU which provides support and legal counseling for Jews who run afoul of the authorities while defending Eretz Yisrael, the Land of Israel. Come to the Israel Center ( Keren Hayesod Street 22) between 15:00-21:00 on Thursday, 11 Av (22 July) to give support. This is a social, cultural, civil rights activity open to all at no charge. Not to be missed! (bli neder I’ll be there promoting Shifra’s book, and hope to see you there!).

Because the spirit of Gush Katif has not been broken... Katif Od Chai!

Meet Shifra Shomron, Book Promo

Hello Everybody,

I'm very excited to share with all of you my latest book promotional!



During the last years of Gush Katif Shifra Shomron, then a teenager finishing high school, kept a diary and published several articles and poems about life in Neve Dekalim.

A glimpse at the author Shifra Shomron with a personal look into the writing of her first novel Grains Of Sand: The Fall Of Neve Dekalim.

It's not just a book - it's a piece of history!

www.geocities.com/nevedekalim

A Humdinger

A Humdinger

By Sara Layah Shomron

Nitzan caravilla

The other day I got a ride into Nitzan by a visiting family looking for the "Nitzanim youth building." I suggested perhaps they want the kibbutz across the way? The back seat passenger gal asked me if I spoke English. The father had made yorida (emigrated from Israel) in 1984 (same year Yossi and I began our aliyah (ascend to Israel) and wanted to show his children places from his past. I then thought that perhaps he was referring to the Nitzan field school. They didn't think so but offered me a ride to "wherever I was headed."

I got in and told them I'd accompany them to where I thought they wanted to go. They, the late teenage-early twenty year gal Liora, twenty-something guy driver, and late 50's-early 60's man were a family visiting from New York.

As we approached the religious community of Nitzan (behind caravilla site and to which Neve Dekalim is extending) I instructed the driver to turn left and continue forward. The man thought to then turn right rather than continue forward as it looked familiar to him. The driver did as I instructed. "Yes, this is it!" the man exclaimed. The gal emphatically told me, "it was a good thing we picked you up or we would never have found it!"

I explained that behind them was a permanent site for those from the destroyed Neve Dekalim Gush Katif community that want to build here. The driver expressed surprise thinking not a single Gush Katif permanent site had made any progress let alone building. I pointed out the houses under construction and explained that some 70 families, including mine, are waiting for building permits... The driver offered to drive me back to the caravillas but I happily told him "thanks - but I can walk." He then asked if I was sure to which I said "it's no big deal" (I didn't want to take any time away from their family sharing).

I accompanied the family into the field school. As we walked I explained to Liora some of the historical significance adding explanatory markers are randomly placed around the site, and that a film is available inside for viewing The gal looked up and said, "Aba! We have a photo of you and Ima standing in front of this building!" I then told them I was happy to have been of help. As we parted the gal said, "Shabbat Shalom." As weird as it sounds I felt as though I was an angle on the road put there to direct them. I am strongly believe in hashgacha p'ratit,(Divine Providence) and firmly believe that everything happens for a reason.

On my walk back I suddenly felt a sting and saw a bee buzz away. I looked for the stinger, saw something that might have been it and removed it. I had never been bit by a bee before but as an allergic person knew I might be in trouble especially as my stung finger and hand immediately began to swell, become paralyzed and I had major pain. I cell-phoned home telling the children where I was and that if they didn't hear from me in five minutes to come with help to get me. I then cell-phoned our health clinic to find out if they were open - they were- and the perceptive receptionist asked me what was wrong. I quickly told her of my sting adding that I would be there in a few minutes. I promptly cell-phoned my children that I was just about at the health clinic.

The doctor wasn't in but nurse was. She told me to put the stung area under cold water and ice would help. I left the health clinic to find one of my children running up to me and saw two others walking in the direction from where I got stung.

We rushed home. One child got the freezer-pack out of the freezer. I immediately put my hand under running cold water while another child handed me an ice cube. I put my hand on the freezer-pack and ice cube on finger where I got stung. I then remembered from my Shiloh days working at the daycare facility that I was told by someone to put crushed garlic on a bee sting were someone to get stung. Strange what things we remember!

A couple weeks ago our local grocery store had a new item - frozen crushed garlic in a packet of some dozen or so small separate squares. I bought thinking I might use it - but hadn't until now. I applied it along with a combination of ice cubes, frozen ice-pack, cold water, a baking soda/water solution, and Benadryl gel. My hand remained itchy and swollen for two days.

"No good deed goes unpunished" a couple of people have responded upon hearing of this. I hate that expression - it's so not Jewish to me! I try to be of help to others whenever I can - not to receive any reward but because I believe it's the right thing to do. It's exciting to be a prt of "random acts of kindness;" increasing the amount of goodness in the world and part of tikun olam (fixing the world).

Super Great-Grandmother of Jewish Gaza Passes Away

Super Great-Grandmother of Jewish Gaza Passes Away
In Memory of Sylvia Mandelbaum

By Shifra Shomron
Nitzan Caravilla


Once she gifted me with an elegant wallet. It was black leather with golden clasps. I thought it very handsome, but I was a mere teenager and didn't feel comfortable accepting it from an elderly lady. But she insisted I take it. And being Sylvia Mandelbaum, she won her point. She nearly always did… She was a determined person. Spunky too. She fell in love with Gush Katif when on a tour there at an advanced age ("my age is nobody's business but my own") and moved there. In the early days, while her villa was being constructed, she lived in a caravan adjacent to my family. And she determinedly brought back floor tiles for her house in order to move the building process along quicker.

Her Neve-Dekalim villa-neighborhood house was lovely. She had long, colorful, glass-stained windows, the house was spacious, and the furniture nicely arranged. Her garden was a dream. A well-kept lawn, large sweet-smelling rose vines, tall mimosas and several fruit-bearing tangerine trees. In the villa neighborhood the children all affectionately knew her as 'grandma' – a fact which filled her with pride. She would regularly host spaghetti dinners in her garden for them so their parents could rest from cooking. Sylvia laughed telling me that the mothers would show their thanks by sending her portions of the meals they made. Sylvia was amused saying that she certainly enjoyed the Israeli cooking, but what she enjoyed more was having the young children around her…

She had a fascinating history. Since I know I won't possibly do it justice, I'm quite reluctant to even try. She started by designing shoes. She told me that she was very good at it. But she didn't remain at that job. She married, she had children, she moved to California (for the climate), she was a real estate agent, later she made Aliyah and she also wrote many articles over the years and authored books. She also introduced Gishur (divorce by mediation) in Israel which is quite a feather in her cap. I'm convinced I don't know all of it. Despite my willingness to listen, she wasn't one to dwell much on the past – she was interested in the present. She listened to the news and kept herself up to date. And when the Disengagement Plan first breathed air she was very worried as to the future of the nation, and as to her own future. She had reason to be.

When I first started writing articles she insisted on reading them. She told me I was lucky; that I had discovered very early in life where my talent lay. And to my great embarrassment, she insisted on my autographing for her every article I wrote.

Mrs. Sylvia Mandelbaum has passed away today.

It is three years to the expulsion of Neve Dekalim.

She was buried in Jerusalem at 3:30 this afternoon in Har HaMenuchot, at the entrance to Jerusalem.

And what remains to me are memories of an ardent Zionist and independent thinker. She was certainly an activist and a doer in her lifetime. And I continue to fondly use the wallet.


Shifra Shomron is the author of the historic novel, Grains Of Sand: The Fall Of Neve Dekalim, (Mazo Publishers, 2007).
"Travel beyond time and beyond location – into my Gush Katif"
Visit Shifra's website: www.geocities.com/nevedekalim

Bittersweet; The Third Memorial of the Destruction of Gush Katif and the Northern Shomron communities

Bittersweet; The Third Memorial of the Destruction of Gush Katif and the Northern Shomron communities

By Sara Layah Shomron
Nitzan caravilla

With our third memorial of the destruction of our Gush Katif and northern Shomron communities quickly approaching I find myself thinking of my cousins' aliya on the exact same date, same time, same year.

My cousins made aliya from the USA with the Nefesh b' Nefesh organization. For them it surely was a time filled with mixed emotions teetering between excitement, hope, and apprehension as they approached their new life chapter in Israel.

My world in Gush Katif was falling apart before my eyes and I so desperately needed to welcome these relatives with whom I had only recently become familiar, this plane, hear the Zionist speeches, and witness this in-gathering - but it wasn't to be.

Our nation had lost a national treasure but simultaneously had gained strength in Jewish families making aliya. I felt we stood together with new challenges ahead.

I am happy to write of my cousins' positive attitudes and efforts in acclimating and integrating into their new life. They're off to a running start and pacing themselves nicely – children and parents alike. They are actively involved with their community, and are making their aliya work.

Here at the temporary Nitzan caravilla where the largest concentration of former Gush Katif residents reside, we find those people that are doing well are doing so in spite of the government and not because of it.

According to the recently published Maagar Mohot Institute comprehensive study of the Gush Katif population measuring attitude and perception towards the Israeli government as well as emotional, financial, and medical situations three years after the Israeli unilateral withdrawal from Gaza, (Ynet, 07.23.08 "Gush Katif evacuees suffering financial, medical problems"), the former Gush Katif residents feel the government failed miserably in fulfilling its slogan "There is a solution for every settler."

Approximately 70% of the Maagar Mohot study participants claim their financial situation is far worse than it was prior to the evacuation while 37% consider their over-all situation “bad” or “very bad.” Gush Katif residents were productive, employed members of society prior to Disengagement whereas today 50% remain unemployed with the former farmers 31% unemployment rate especially high. Moreover, while the overwhelming majority chose to stay with their Gush Katif community, 67% are dissatisfied with their temporary prefab caravilla structures. Lastly, 61% of the study participants claim the grossly inadequate compensation monies allocated for housing are being spent on daily expenses with little left for housing.

The combination of high unemployment, financial difficulties, inadequate temporary housing and tight, limited budgets for permanent housing all conspire to make an increase in acute medical diagnoses including depression, heart disease, and cancer. These ailments were unknown among the former Gush Katif residents prior to Disengagement.

Yet we will continue with our struggle.

We will build new communities based on the foundations and goals of our destroyed Gush Katif. The infrastructure for the permanent Neve Dekalim site here at Nitzan continue at a snail pace, yet many families have met and continue to meet with architects and contractors. As of this writing, 72 families, including mine, await the required building permits while about 15 houses have already begun to be built.










May we all continue to go from strength to strength!

A Tree Grows in the Nitzan Caravillas

A Tree Grows in the Nitzan Caravillas

by Shifra Shomron

My goodness, how I love acacias! Their dark-brown trunks smoothly rising from the ground, their slim dark-green leaves a dancing canopy against the sky. And they grow so quickly! It was these characteristics that made my family decide to plant them back in our garden in Gush Katif. True, our neighbors laughed at us for planting such wild weeds. But we cared not for their laughter – these were the only trees hardy enough to grow independently in the arid sand dunes of Gush Katif. However, to our dismay, we quickly discovered the secret of these trees survival. Their roots. Yes, indeed. Even when they are so young that only two tiny leaves have burst up from the sand, their roots are already two feet long. And those roots grow down deep and they spread out wide. And in the end, we were forced to uproot our acacias – because they were stealing the water from the surrounding plants; the grass and flowers were being sucked dry. And we replaced them with meek, tame, slow-growing trees.

And yet I continued to love acacias. How could one fail to love such a wild, beautiful, hardy tree? Theirs was the only splash of green in the Gush Katif sand dunes. They were the trees in which my siblings and I built our childhood forts. And it was their bright-yellow puff-ball flowers that yearly announced the coming of spring and…my allergies.

Since Disengagement, it only takes the sight of a stunted, dusty, road-side acacia to remind me of my destroyed home and of my lost land. And the Nitzan Caravilla site has very few trees.

My father refuses to invest much in our temporary Caravilla – or in the small adjoining patch of ground. My father was being pragmatic, logical and right. "Wait until we have a permanent home, Shifie. Then we'll make a nice garden," he said. But time passed. And no permanent house is visible on the horizon. My brothers planted mint, myrtle and a few other small plants. Eventually, my father agreed to water these plants when my brothers were away at Yeshiva. And one day, when we were walking through the construction site where Neve Dekalim hopes to rebuild our community, I noticed that one of the little piles of dirt was covered with small acacias.

I looked at them longingly. Dark green, silky leaves, tender shoots… "Aba, why don't we plant some acacias?" I slowly asked my father. He glanced at me, looked at the acacias, and the idea took root.

Well, we've done it. We've planted five nicely sized acacias around our Caravilla. Four have already produced new leaves. They will grow quickly and provide us with shade as well as with the aesthetic pleasure of seeing green outside the windows. Sturdy, hardy trees – they'll grow well even in our temporary Caravilla site. There is no grass around them, no flowers for them to bother. Their roots can spread as far out and as deep as they please. True, their life-span is short – about 5 to 7 years. But that's fine with us. That's approximately the amount of time we'll be living here in the Caravillas.



Shifra Shomron is the author of Grains Of Sand: The Fall Of Neve Dekalim, (2007), Mazo Publishers.
Travel back in time and revisit Gush Katif, Israel.
Shifra's website: www.geocities.com/nevedekalim