Ein Gev () is a kibbutz in northern

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

. Located on the eastern shore of the

Sea of Galilee The Sea of Galilee (, Judeo-Aramaic languages, Judeo-Aramaic: יַמּא דטבריא, גִּנֵּיסַר, ), also called Lake Tiberias, Genezareth Lake or Kinneret, is a freshwater lake in Israel. It is the lowest freshwater lake on Earth ...

near the ruins of the Greco-Roman settlement of Hippos, it falls under the jurisdiction of Emek HaYarden Regional Council. In its population was .

History

PikiWiki Israel 48236 Geography of Israel

Ein Gev, named after the nearby Arab village Al-Nuqayb, came into being on 6 July 1937 during the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine as a " tower and stockade" settlement, a common debut for many kibbutzim during that era, and quickly established itself as a viable community. The original settlers were immigrants from

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

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, and the Baltic countries. Using intensive cultivation methods, they developed banana plantations. They also fished the nearby Sea of Galilee. By 1947 it had a population of 450. Situated along a border shared with

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

, Ein Gev was shelled during the Battles of the Kinarot Valley and in other engagements during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. Shooting incidents remained common for the next nineteen years. These dangers were only eliminated when Israel occupied the neighbouring Golan Heights in the 1967 Six-Day War. Due to the fact it was situated in the Israel–Syria demilitarised zone under the 1949 Armistice Agreements, Ein Gev was claimed by Syria as its territory during negotiations for a peace agreement in the 1990s. The Israeli government rejected the claim on the grounds that it was west of the 1923 border agreement between Mandatory Palestine and the French Mandate of Syria. File:עין גב - ביום העליה.-JNF043205.jpeg, Ein Gev first attempt at settlement 1920 File:העלייה לעין גב-JNF009857.jpeg, Ein Gev erecting tower 1937 File:עין גב - הנקודה הבנויה ועדר גמלים.-JNF044862.jpeg, Ein Gev 1937 File:עין גב - מפקד הנוטרים במקום.-JNF044861.jpeg, Ein Gev guards 1937 File:עין גב - ביקור פקידי ממשלה הממונים על היעור ביחד עם מנהל היעור של הקק"ל, מר יוסף ויץ, בסביבות עין גב-JNF009853.jpeg, Ein Gev visit by Joseph Weitz 1942 File:Ein-Gev.jpg, Ein-Gev from Sea of Galilee, 1947 File:Ein-Gev ii.jpg, View of Ein-Gev from the East, 1947 File:Maats Ein Gev Pier.jpg, Ein Gev pier, c 1947 File:Ein Gev.jpg, Palmach members working at Ein Gev, before the 1948 war File:Ein Gev i.jpg, Women from Yiftach Brigade working at Ein Gev. 1948 File:Ein Gev - Al Samra - Al Hamma Demilitarized Zone.png, Ein Gev - Al Samra - Al Hamma Demilitarized Zone, per the Israel–Syria Mixed Armistice Commission

Economy

The kibbutz operates a holiday resort and a fish restaurant. Agricultural branches include banana plantations and dairy farming. The kibbutz built a 2,500-seat concert hall to accommodate the Ein Gev Music Festival, held annually during Passover.

Archaeology

Near the present-day village an important archaeological site from the Mesolithic Kebaran culture has been excavated. The Greco-Roman Decapolis city of Hippos stood on the hill overlooking the kibbutz. The archaeological site is currently being excavated.

Notable people

* Teddy Kollek (1911–2007), politician, mayor of

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

from 1965 to 1993, and founder of the Jerusalem Foundation * Effi Eitam (born 1952), retired brigadier general, former commander of the 91st Division, and politician

References

External links

* {{Authority control Kibbutzim Kibbutz Movement Populated places established in 1937 Jewish villages in Mandatory Palestine Natufian sites Populated places in Northern District (Israel) 1937 establishments in Mandatory Palestine Tourist attractions in the Golan Heights Latvian-Jewish culture in Israel Lithuanian-Jewish culture in Israel Austrian-Jewish culture in Israel Czech-Jewish culture in Israel German-Jewish culture in Israel Slovak-Jewish culture in Israel Sea of Galilee Kebaran culture