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Tzrifin (Hebrew:צְרִיפִין) is an area inGush Dan (Dan Region) in centralIsrael, located on the eastern side ofRishon LeZion and including parts ofBe'er Ya'akov. The area proper is defined as an 'area without jurisdiction' between the two cities.
Nearly the entire area of Tzrifin proper was taken up by the centralIsrael Defense Forces (IDF) base, CampYigael Yadin (a.k.a. Camp Tzrifin, Camp 782), with which it is synonymous, even though the base also spills into Rishon LeZion and Be'er Ya'akov. Camp Yadin contains a multitude oftraining bases, as well asPrison Four, the largestIsraeli military prison.
In late 2010s it was decided to vacate the area, move its bases toCamp Ariel Sharon in the South and repurpose the land for residential development.
Tzrifin is a hebrew form of Sarafend (Ṣarafand / صرفند), anArabic rendition of thePhoenicianplace-name *Ṣrpt.[1]
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the area of Tzrifin belonged to the Nahiyeh (sub-district) ofLod that encompassed the area of the present-day city ofModi'in-Maccabim-Re'ut in the south to the present-day city ofEl'ad in the north, and from the foothills in the east, through the Lod Valley to the outskirts ofJaffa in the west. This area was home to thousands of inhabitants in about 20 villages, who had at their disposal tens of thousands of hectares of prime agricultural land.[2]
Tzrifin was founded in 1917, duringWorld War I, as a British base namedSarafand orSarafend, after the nearby Arab villageSarafand al-Amar. On 10 December 1918 Arab and Bedouin men were killed systematically byAnzac troops in theSurafend massacre. Sarafand was a central British base in a strategic location situated nearby the important railway junction at Lydda (Lod) – which was accessible from the base via a spur off of theJaffa–Lydda–Jerusalem railway. TheTransjordan Frontier Force (TJFF) was established at Sarafand on 1 April 1926 with a cadre drawn from theArab Legion. The TJFF subsequently moved toZerqa in October 1926. DuringWorld War II, theJewish Brigade was formed in Tzrifin.[3]
Starting in the 1930s, next to the military camp there was aconcentration camp forArab and Jewish Palestinian convicts inadministrative detention, and forJewish illegal immigrants.[4][5]
On 14 May 1948, the day of theIsraeli declaration of independence, British forces vacated Sarafand. False rumours suggested the British sold the base to the Arabs, but only Arab residents of nearby villages, some of whom worked in the base, entered the base for looting.[6] The adjacent Arab village Sarafand al-'Amr was depopulated on 15 May. After a two-day battle, between the 18th and 19 May, the base was captured by the Jewish forces from theGivati Brigade.[7] The place was named Tzrifin after a historical city with that name located in the area and mentioned in theTalmud.[8]
As the years passed,Rishon LeZion expanded to the east, eventually reaching the fence line of Camp Yadin. As a result, the IDF decided to vacate Tzrifin and sell its land to private residential developers due to the high land value. By the early 2020s the IDF is expected to vacate all of its installations from Tzrifin, with most of their functions being relocated to new bases toCamp Ariel Sharon in theNegev desert, Southern Israel.[citation needed] In 2019 the central part of the camp was demolished to give way for 1,100 new apartments for Rishon LeZion.[9]
Tzrifin is located between Rishon LeZion on the west, and Be'er Ya'akov on all 3 other sides. It is 72 m (236 ft) abovesea level and 15 km (9.3 mi) from the Mediterranean seashore.[3] The base in it has three main entrances—Jaffa Gate, Jerusalem Gate and Rishon LeZion Gate, all of which are located within the municipalities, and not within Tzrifin proper.
The Jaffa Gate links a street within the base toRoad 44 (Tzrifin Junction). At this location, there are a number of fast food restaurants and a pedestrian bridge which connects the base to the bus terminal on the other side of the road. TheAssaf HaRofeh Medical Center is located near the Jaffa Gate.
The Jerusalem Gate links the base to Tzahal Road (Road 4313) in Be'er Ya'akov, which ultimately connects to Road 44 at the Nir Tzvi Junction in theEmek Lod Regional Council. The Rishon LeZion gate is located deep within Rishon LeZion and connects Rishon's Jerusalem Street with the base.
As with many other IDF bases, Camp Yadin is a container base for many smaller ones. The following is a list of bases within Camp Yadin.
During the 1950s, aMa'abara was located on the lands of Tzrifin, the residents of which eventually moved out to the nearby towns, especiallyLod.
Currently, several non-military installations are located in the Tzrifin area:
The Israel Defense Forces is slated to move most bases in Tzrifin in 2013–2014 to the newCity of Training Bases being built south ofBeersheba. The area of the base will open to civilian development, and will be divided between the municipalities ofRishon LeZion andBe'er Ya'akov. Most of the area, 840dunams (0.84 km2), will go Rishon LeZion, and much of it will be zoned for commercial development. This will including an industrial zone for medical development, next to the Asaf HaRofe Hospital. Be'er Ya'akov will get 560 dunams (0.56 km2) mostly for residential development.[10]
An archaeological excavation was conducted atKhirbet Tzrifin in 2010 by Ron Toueg on behalf ofIsrael Antiquities Authority (IAA).[11]
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