Nahal settlement

Nahal settlements (היאחזות נח"ל ) were Israeli settlements established by Israeli soldiers of Nahal in both Israel and the Israeli-occupied territories.

Supporting the growth and expansion of Israeli Jews was once the main focus of Nahal troops of the Israel Defense Forces and was primarily carried out through the program. The goal for every Nahal settlement was to become a civilian settlement and serve as a first line of defense against potential future Arab invasions while providing a base of operations and resources for Israeli troops operating in peripheral regions.

This method of encouraging settlement was particularly effective in regions of Israel that were less desirable for human inhabitation (mainly the Negev, the Galilee, and the Aravah) between 1948 and 1967. After the 1967 Arab–Israeli War, Nahal settlements were also established in the newly Israeli-occupied territories (the Jordanian-annexed West Bank and the Egyptian-occupied Gaza Strip, and the Syrian Golan Heights and the Egyptian Sinai Peninsula) in pursuit of similar goals.

The first such settlement was Nahal Oz, located in the northwestern Negev in Israel, near the Gaza–Israel border.

A number of former Nahal settlements, which were originally military, are now entirely civilian; many of today's were originally Nahal settlements. The last Nahal settlement was closed in 2001.