Morag (Israeli settlement)
{{Short description|Former Israeli settlement in the Gaza Strip}}
{{Pp-extended|small=yes}}
{{Infobox Kibbutz
|settlement_type=Former Israeli settlement
|pushpin_map=Israel gaza
|pushpin_mapsize= 250
|pushpin_label_position=
|coordinates = {{coord|31|18|30|N|34|17|17|E|display=inline,title}}
|name= Morag
|image= Gush Katif-Morag01.jpg
|caption= Hothouses in Morag.
|imgsize= 250
|hebname={{Script/Hebrew|מוֹרַג}}
|arname=
|stdHeb=
|altOffSp=
|altUnoSp=
|meaning= Flail
|foundation= 1983
|founded_by=
|district=
|council=
|affiliation= HaPoel HaMizrahi
|population=
|popyear=
|area_dunam=
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}}
Morag ({{langx|he|מוֹרַג||Flail}}) was an Israeli settlement organized as a moshav in the Gush Katif settlement bloc. in the south-west edge of the Gaza Strip. It was evacuated as part of Israel's unilateral disengagement plan of 2005.
History
Morag was the southernmost settlement in Gush Katif. It was first established on 29 May 1972, as a non-religious pioneer Nahal military outpost, and demilitarized when turned over to residential purposes in 1982.{{cite news |author=Andrea Stone |title=Evictions and emotions on tense day in Gaza |url= https://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2005-08-15-gaza-monday_x.htm |date= 15 August 2009 |publisher=USA Today |accessdate=27 August 2009}} It later became a religious agricultural worker cooperative, whose residents earned their living growing flowers and vegetables in hothouses.{{citation needed|date=August 2014}} At the time of the evacuation, there were about forty families including about 200 people.{{citation needed|date=August 2014}}
==Unilateral disengagement==
Sixteen families of Morag were evicted on August 17, 2005, by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Israeli Police. Others had left earlier following the government orders.{{cite web |author=Mike Tobin |author2=Jennifer Griffin |title=Israeli Troops Forcibly Remove Gaza Settlers |url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,165951,00.html |date=17 August 2005 |publisher= Fox News |accessdate=27 August 2009}}
Palestinian plans
On the ruins of the former village, a Palestinian locality has been announced called Sheikh Khalifa City.{{Cite news
| agency = Associated Press
| title = Palestinians launch new housing project where Gush Katif's Morag once stood
| work = Haaretz
| accessdate=2014-01-14
| date = 2005-10-09
| url = http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/palestinians-launch-new-housing-project-where-gush-katif-s-morag-once-stood-1.171537
}} The site is named after United Arab Emirates President Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan due to his funding of the project.{{Cite web |url=http://www.uaeinteract.com/government/development_aid.asp |title=Watch Series/Episodes Online for Free |access-date=2014-08-21 |archive-date=2019-01-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190105185506/http://www.uaeinteract.com/government/development_aid.asp |url-status=dead }}
Gaza War
On 2 April 2025, Israeli Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu announced the creation of the Morag Corridor on the site of this settlement, following the resumption of combat between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip after the breakdown of the ceasefire implemented in January 2025.{{Cite web |date=2 April 2025 |title=Israel’s Netanyahu announces new ‘Morag’ security corridor across Gaza |url=https://www.france24.com/en/middle-east/20250402-live-israel-seize-large-areas-gaza-strip-palestine-hamas-netanyahu-war |access-date=4 April 2025 |website=France 24 |language=en}}
References
{{Commons category|Morag}}
{{Reflist}}
{{Former Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morag (Moshav)}}
Category:Former Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip
Category:Religious Israeli settlements
Category:Villages depopulated during the Arab–Israeli conflict