Otzem | |
Arname: | عوتسيم |
Meaning: | Intensity |
Founded: | 1955 |
Founded By: | Moroccan immigrants |
District: | south |
Council: | Lakhish |
Affiliation: | Moshavim Movement |
Pushpin Map: | Israel ashkelon |
Pushpin Mapsize: | 250 |
Pushpin Label Position: | top |
Coordinates: | 31.6358°N 34.7031°W |
Website: | https://lachish.org.il/%D7%99%D7%A9%D7%95%D7%91%D7%99-%D7%94%D7%9E%D7%95%D7%A2%D7%A6%D7%94/%D7%A2%D7%95%D7%A6%D7%9D/ |
Otzem is a moshav in southern Israel. Located in Hevel Lakhish, it falls under the jurisdiction of Lakhish Regional Council. In it had a population of .
The moshav was founded in 1955 by Jewish immigrants from Morocco.
According to Palestinian historian Walid Khalidi, the moshav's establishment was part of the effort to settle the region on land that had belonged to the depopulated Palestinian village of Iraq Suwaydan.[1]
The name, which means "intensity", refers to the intensity of the battles that took place here between the Israel Defense Forces and the Egyptian army during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War.
In 1956, a small church with mosaic floors and Greek inscriptions, dating from the fifth to sixth centuries AD, was excavated here.