Ofakim
| Ofakim | |||
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| Basic data | |||
| hebrew : | אופקים | ||
| arabic : | أوفاكيم | ||
| State : |
 Israel
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| District : | south | ||
| Founded : | April 19, 1955 | ||
| Coordinates : | 31 ° 17 ′ N , 34 ° 37 ′ E | ||
| Height : | 138 m | ||
| Area : | 10.273 km² | ||
| Residents : | 29,021 (as of: 2018) | ||
| Population density : | 2,825 inhabitants per km² | ||
| Community code : | 0031 | ||
| Time zone : | UTC + 2 | ||
| Community type: | city | ||
| Website : | |||
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Ofakim ( Hebrew אופקים, Arabic أوفاكيم) is a city in the south of Israel . It is located in the southern district , 24 km west of Be'er Scheva in the steppe-like North Negev region and has 29,021 inhabitants (2018). The land around the city is used for agriculture with irrigation . Ofakim means " horizons " in German .
The city was founded in 1955 when Jewish immigrants from North Africa were settled in the region. Later immigrants came mainly from Iran , Egypt , India , Romania , Ethiopia and the former Soviet Union .
The city is one of the so-called developing cities of Israel , which is expressed, among other things, in the relatively high number of welfare recipients. Since its foundation, the city has suffered from structural problems, mainly due to the distance from the center of the country.
Ofakim officially belongs to the metropolitan area of the central city of Beersheba, where many residents work. In order to improve the connection to the rest of Israel, a railway line of the Israel Railways from Beersheba via Ofakim, Netiwot , Sderot to Ashkelon is being built.
Zvika Greengold, an Israeli national hero of the Yom Kippur War , was Mayor of Ofakim.
Web links
- Ofakim City Homepage (Hebrew)
Individual evidence
- ↑ אוכלוסייה ביישובים 2018 (population of the settlements 2018). (XLSX; 0.13 MB) Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , August 25, 2019, accessed May 11, 2020 .
- ↑ אוכלוסייה ביישובים 2018 (population of the settlements 2018). (XLSX; 0.13 MB) Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , August 25, 2019, accessed May 11, 2020 .