RAMOT NAFTALI

RAMOT NAFTALI (Heb. רָמוֹת נַפְתָּלִי; ramot, "heights"), moshav E. of the Israel-Lebanese border, Israel, affiliated with Tenu'at ha-Moshavim. It was founded by a group of veteran soldiers called "Irgun Wingate." Originally a moshav shittufi, Ramot Naftali was the first settlement of demobilized soldiers from World War II. In the war of independence (1948), the settlers were in a highly dangerous position and in one instance drove off Lebanese attacking forces after they had already broken into the settlement's perimeter. Although after the war moshav-born youth, and later new immigrants joined the village, it made little progress, due to a number of difficulties: access to the site, the pumping of water, and reclamation of the mountainous terrain for farming. Deciduous fruit trees and vineyards constituted its prominent agricultural branches. Later, guest rooms became another source of income in the face its declining farm economy. Large areas in the vicinity have been afforested. In 2002 the population of Ramot Naftali was 414. (Efraim Orni)