Hanita
Hanita
חֲנִיתָה | |
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Coordinates: 33°5′15″N 35°10′25″E / 33.08750°N 35.17361°E | |
Country | ![]() |
District | Northern |
Council | Mateh Asher |
Affiliation | Kibbutz Movement |
Founded | 1938 |
Founded by | Jewish pioneers |
Population (2022)[1] | 746 |
Website | www |
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Sadeh_1938.jpg/240px-Sadeh_1938.jpg)
Hanita (Hebrew: חֲנִיתָה) is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located in the western Galilee approximately 15 kilometres northeast of Nahariya, it falls under the jurisdiction of Mateh Asher Regional Council. In 2022 it had a population of 746.[1]
History
[edit]Antiquity
[edit]Kibbutz Hanita was established on the site of an ancient ruin by that same name (Hanita; variant: Hanuta), and is mentioned in rabbinic writings: Tosefta (Shevi'it 4:9), the Jerusalem Talmud (Demai 2:1) and in the 3rd-century Mosaic of Rehob.
Ottoman era
[edit]In the 1878 Palestine Exploration Fund Map published by C. R. Conder and HH Kitchener it was listed as the ruin, Khurbet Hanuta.
British Mandate
[edit]Kibbutz Hanita was established on 21 March 1938, as part of the Tower and stockade operation during the 1936–39 Arab revolt. However, Hanita was a special project, the largest of the entire operation and led directly by Yitzhak Sadeh, a top military leader of the Yishuv (Jewish community in Mandatory Palestine). Unlike other Tower and stockade settlements, Hanita was not established out of another nearby settlement, where all building material would be stored in advance, as was the rule. The lack of Jewish settlements in Western Galilee and the site's extremely remote location precluded that option. Four-hundred people contributed in the erection of the first walled camp, many notrim (Jewish Mandatory police) included. There were no roads leading to the site and materials had to be carried by hand under armed protection. Due to the 1937 Peel Commission report, the Yishuv leadership under David Ben-Gurion thought the partition of Palestine to be imminent, with the borders to be decided through diplomacy, and with no Jewish foothold the Western Galilee would remain out of bounds. Hanita was one of the new Jewish settlements established in the area, with an additional defensive role, as it sat directly on the border with Lebanon, which was at the time controlled by France. The establishment of Hanita was hailed as the most impressive action of the Tower and stockade operation, it was in part captured on film, and became the subject of an opera.[2][3][4]
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Hanita 1938
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Hanita 1938
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Hanita 1938
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Hanita, inside the wall, June 1938
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Members of Yiftach Brigade, "D" Company, assembling at Hanita. 1948
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Chaim Weizmann visiting Hanita
2023 Israel–Hamas war
[edit]During the 2023 war between Hamas and Israel, northern Israeli border communities, including Hanita, faced targeted attacks by Hezbollah and Palestinian factions based in Lebanon, and were evacuated.[5]
Economy
[edit]The economy is based on a combination of agriculture and industry. The kibbutz grows bananas, citrus fruits and field crops. Its main source of income comes from two factories: Kotlab produces metalized films for packaging, heat and cold insulation, and use in safety devices. Hanita Lenses produces contact lenses and lenses for implants.[6]
Scenes from the 1953 Kirk Douglas film The Juggler were filmed in Hanita.[7]
Notable people
[edit]- Eliezer Ben-Rafael, professor of sociology
- Matti Caspi (born 1949), composer, musician, singer, and lyricist
- Moshe Dayan
References
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- ^ a b "Regional Statistics". Israel Central Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
- ^ Uniform (and History) of Jewish Palestine Police "Noter" Historama
- ^ Foundations Of Excellence: Moshe Dayan And Israel's Military Tradition (1880 To 1950) Global Security
- ^ The Establishment of the Jewish Agency and Expansion of the Yishuv Jewish Agency
- ^ IDF to evacuate civilians from 28 communities along Lebanese border amid attacks
- ^ Hanita website
- ^ Shaw, Tony; Goodman, Giora (8 March 2022). Hollywood and Israel: A History. Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-54492-4.