Gaza Envelope
Gaza Envelope | |
|---|---|
Region in Israel | |
Darom Adom festival Anemone coronaria flowers | |
| Types of settlements | Kibbutz, villages, towns |
| Largest town | Ashkelon, Sderot |
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The Gaza Envelope (Hebrew: עוטף עזה, Otef Aza) is a modern administrative and security term that has become the common designation for the area in southern Israel immediately abutting the Gaza Strip, forming part of the broader, historic Western Negev (Hebrew: הַנֶּגֶב הַמַּעֲרָבִי, HaNegev HaMa'aravi) region.
Technically, the term specifies towns, kibbutzim, and moshavim situated within seven kilometres (4+1⁄2 miles) of the border, defining the core zone targeted by rocket and mortar attacks launched from Gaza. Israeli architect and author Eyal Weizman points to the Envelope's central role in enforcing the long-standing blockade of the Gaza Strip by Israel. According to Weizman, the Gaza Strip and Envelope can be seen as "the interdependent and co-constitutive projects of Israel's settler-colonial geography. The first, a concentration and exclusion zone for Palestinians dispossessed of their lands; and the second, a fortified envelope to pin them in." Thus, the region has long been the target of cross-border violence, culminating in a massive, coordinated invasion by Hamas and allied militants during the 2023 October 7 attacks.
The area is known for the Anemone coronaria flowering during spring, which is celebrated in the Darom Adom festival. Most of the population in the area resides in kibbutzim.