Ein Gev — a kibbutz on the eastern shore of Lake Kinneret (Sea of Galilee), opposite the city of Tiberias, on the border with Syria. Named after the Arabic name of a natural spring. Founded in 1937, when settlements were established at strategically important points in Israel. It belongs to the Ha-tnu'a ha-kibbutzit ha-me'uhedet movement. It was founded by members of the “Olim” movement from Latvia together with halutzim from Lithuania and Western Europe. In 1937 there was no road around the lake, and Ein Gev could only be reached from Tiberias by boat. During the War of Independence, from 9 to 11 July 1948, the kibbutz was blockaded by Syrian forces; 8 kibbutz members were killed, including Ilka Goldberg, a member of the Latvian “Netzah” movement. Under a temporary agreement with Syria, the kibbutz remained within Israel's borders in 1949. A monument “Mother and Child” (by sculptor Hanna Orlova) was erected on kibbutz grounds in memory of the fallen. Syrian forces regularly shelled Israeli fishing vessels on the Kinneret, the kibbutz Ein Gev, and its surroundings. On 17 March 1962, near the village of Nukeiba north of Ein Gev, an operation was carried out against Syrian forces by a unit of the Golani Brigade. Among those killed by the Syrians while fishing was Ein Gev kibbutz member Yosef Wolfeon, originally from Daugavpils, who had come to Israel with the help of the Briha organisation. With the help of the same organisation, in 1948 Esther Faine (née Mankova, born 1918), a native of Ludza, arrived here illegally by ship from France. Both her sisters, members of the Latvian “Netzah” organisation, still live in the kibbutz. Among the founders of the kibbutz was also Mordechai Neishat. In 2002, 523 people lived in the kibbutz. Initially the members were engaged mainly in fishing. Currently the kibbutz also grows vegetables; there are vast banana and date palm plantations; dairy farming and poultry farming are well developed; there is an ostrich farm. Tourism brings considerable income. Ein Gev has a large hotel and a popular fish restaurant. A symphony music festival is traditionally held in the concert hall during Passover.

Lit.: Short Jewish Encyclopaedia in 11 vols. Jerusalem. Vol. 10. 2001. Col. 454; Encyclopaedia Judaica. 2007. Vol. 6. Pp. 256–257; Avraham Itai and Mordechai Neishat. Through Three Undergrounds. Jerusalem, 1976.

B. Valdmanis