Shirat HaYam:
Thirteen families from the former seaside Gush Katif community of Shirat HaYam have decided to turn their personal tragedy into a national opportunity, and will start a new community in the northern Jordan Valley. The site of the new Jewish presence: Maskiyot, near Shadmot Meholah, south of Beit She'an. The families are set to move there one month from now.
They are still seven families short of a new community, however, according to the rules of the Disengagement's Evacuation-Compensation Law. With the help of the Amanah Settlement Organization and the Jordan Valley Regional Council, they are hoping to find seven additional families from among the other Gush Katif or northern Shomron expellees, or from elsewhere in Israel.
Shirat HaYam numbered over 30 families at the time of its destruction a month ago, but almost half of these were newcomers who came to shore up the ranks in the weeks preceding the expulsion. They were originally taken to Kedumim on the day they were thrown out of their homes, and later moved to Alon Shvut, where they are currently living.
Netzarim:
The residents are still living on the campus of the College of Judea and Samaria in Ariel, and the town's yeshiva - Yeshivat Netzer Mata'ai - has opened there for the meanwhile. In the near future, they will move to the Halutza area, south of Gaza, to start a new community, close to the new one being established by former residents of Atzmonah.
"Our goal is to build a new bloc of communities like Gush Katif," said Shlomit of Netzarim, "with Torah, agriculture, idealism, and communal cohesiveness." It is possible that several families will remain in Ariel for a year to form a Torah core-group there; this will be decided in the coming days.
Kfar Darom:
Though the families have agreed to move into a 19-story apartment building in Ashkelon, it is not clear when they will actually do so, as many government permits have not yet been finalized. The government purchased the structure specifically to house the former Kfar Daromites, and will it sell it back to its builder 2-3 years from now.
Kfar Darom spokesman Asher Mivtzari notes that it will serve not only for residency, but will also house the community's synagogue, school, yeshiva, community center, and the like. A decision on where the Kfar Darom people will live permanently is still far off.