Kibbutz Mefalsim is located in the north-western Negev desert and was established by immigrants from Argentina and Uruguay. \u00a0The name \u201cMefalsim\u201d means \u201cto clear a path\u201d or \u201cpave the way\u201d and the kibbutz in named after immigrants from Latin America who paved the way for others to immigrate from Latin American countries. In 1966 the Argentinian ambassador to Israel asked the kibbutz choir to perform Argentinian folk music at the opening of the Argentine House in Jerusalem. This led to the establishment of Conjunto Mefalsim, a band that played Argentinian and Latin American music, appearing on radio and television. The band also recorded several albums.<\/p>\n
Mefalsim was also one of the first kibbutzim to build an extension neighborhood and accept new members. Hence, the kibbutz also \u201cpaved the way\u201d for other kibbutzim to follow in their wake and build more kibbutz extension neighborhoods, marking one of the biggest changes of the kibbutz society. The Kibbutz has some interesting connections to Gazan residents and former residents.\u00a0 In 2005 the kibbutz absorbed some of the evicted families from Gush Katif areas evacuated from the Gaza Strip after the Israeli disengagement<\/strong> from Gaza.\u00a0 In 2017, fruit farmers from Kibbutz Mefalsim joined other farmers in the region and called on the Israeli defense minister to grant entry permits to hundreds of Gazans to work in their orchards. Since 2001 the kibbutz has been hit by dozens of rockets launched from the Gaza Strip, with a few buildings destroyed, including the kindergarten in 2012. In 2018 the community was the first location set ablaze by a fire balloon.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Kibbutz Mefalsim is located in the north-western Negev desert and was established by immigrants from Argentina and Uruguay. \u00a0The name \u201cMefalsim\u201d means \u201cto clear a path\u201d or \u201cpave the way\u201d and the kibbutz in named after immigrants from Latin America who paved the way for others to immigrate from Latin American countries. In 1966 the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/donate.kkl-jnf.org\/westernnegevtribute\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/community\/186"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/donate.kkl-jnf.org\/westernnegevtribute\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/community"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/donate.kkl-jnf.org\/westernnegevtribute\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/community"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/donate.kkl-jnf.org\/westernnegevtribute\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=186"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}