View source for Sderot

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{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2023}}
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{{Infobox settlement
| name                   = Sderot
| native_name            = {{Hlist
 | {{Lang|he|{{Script/Hebrew|שְׂדֵרוֹת}}|rtl=yes}}
 | {{Lang|ar|{{lang|ar|سديروت}}|rtl=yes}}
 }}
| settlement_type        = [[List of cities in Israel|City]] (from 1996)
| translit_lang1         = Hebrew
| translit_lang1_type1   = [[ISO 259]]
| translit_lang1_info1   = Śderot
| image_skyline          = File:PikiWiki Israel 40924 Yanchik Hill near kibbutz Nir Am.JPG
| image_blank_emblem     = Coat of arms of Sderot.png
| pushpin_map_alt        = 
| pushpin_map            = Israel northwest negev#Israel
| pushpin_mapsize        = 
| pushpin_label_position = 
| pushpin_map_caption    = 
| coordinates            = {{coord|31|31|22|N|34|35|43|E|region:IL|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| subdivision_type1      = Country
| subdivision_name1      = {{ISR}}
| subdivision_type2      = [[Districts of Israel|District]]
| subdivision_name2      = 
[[Southern District (Israel)|Southern]]
| established_title      = Founded
| established_date       = 1951
| leader_title           = Mayor
| leader_name            = [[Alon Davidi]]
| unit_pref              = dunam
| area_total_dunam       = {{formatnum:4472|R}}
| population_footnotes   = {{Israel populations|reference}}
| population_total       = {{Israel populations|Sederot}}
| population_as_of       = {{Israel populations|Year}}
| population_density_km2 = auto
| blank_name_sec1        = Name meaning
| blank_info_sec1        = Boulevards/avenues
}}

'''Sderot''' ({{langx|he|שְׂדֵרוֹת}}, {{IPA|he|sdeˈʁot|pron}}, {{lit.|boulevards}}; {{langx|ar|سديروت}}, sometimes Romanized as "Sederot"<!-- is spelled that easy in the population data template {{Israel populations|Sederot}} --><ref>{{cite news |title=Palestinians Hit Home in Sederot |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/01/world/middleeast/01mideast.html |access-date=5 December 2023 |work=The New York Times |date=1 June 2006}}</ref>) is a western [[Negev]] [[city]] and former [[development town]] in the [[Southern District (Israel)|Southern District]] of [[Israel]]. In {{Israel populations|Year}}, it had a population of {{Israel populations|Sederot}}.{{Israel populations|reference}}

Sderot is located less than a mile from [[Gaza Strip|Gaza]] (the closest point is {{Convert|840|m|abbr=on}}),<ref name="ukinisrael.fco.gov.uk" /> and is notable for having been a major target of [[List of Qassam rocket attacks|Qassam rocket attacks]] from the [[Gaza Strip]]. Between 2001 and 2008, [[Palestinian political violence|rocket attacks]] on the city killed 13 people, wounded dozens, caused millions of dollars in damage and profoundly disrupted daily life.<ref name="haaretz-rockets1">{{cite news |author=Avi Issacharoff |author2=Mijal Grinberg |url=https://www.haaretz.com/news/2-israelis-lightly-wounded-as-33-rockets-slam-in-western-negev-1.240446 |title=2 Israelis Lightly Wounded as 33 Rockets Slam in Western Negev |publisher=Haaretz |access-date=2014-02-05}}</ref> Although rocket fire subsided after the [[Gaza War (2008–09)]], the city has come under rocket attack on occasion since that time.

In 2024, Sderot was chosen to serve as a model for Israeli cities in the implementation of [[urban forestry]] ideas.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=2024-11-19 |title=אחרי ה-7 באוקטובר: הפרויקט החדשני של העיר שדרות - וואלה תיירות |url=http://travel.walla.co.il/item/3705597 |access-date=2025-11-08 |website=וואלה |language=he}}</ref>

==Geography==
Sderot lies {{Convert|1|km|miles}} from the [[Gaza Strip]] and the town of [[Beit Hanoun]].

==History==
===20th century===

The Israeli [[Negev Brigade]] had [[List of towns and villages depopulated during the 1947–1949 Palestine war|depopulated]] the area on which Sderot would be built on between 2 May and 13 May 1948, during the [[1948 Arab-Israeli War]], expelling the 422 Muslim farmers there who cultivated citrus, bananas and cereals from the Palestinian village of [[Najd, Gaza|Najd]].<ref name=fisk /> The latter were relocated in Gaza as refugees.<ref name="morris1" /><ref>{{Cite book|title=All that remains : the Palestinian villages occupied and depopulated by Israel in 1948|date=1992|publisher=Institute for Palestine Studies|others=[[Walid Khalidi|Khalidi, Walid]].|isbn=0-88728-224-5|location=Washington, D.C.|oclc=25632612}}</ref><ref name="Peteet" >Julie Peteet, [https://books.google.com/books?id=NxeUDwAAQBAJ&dq=sderot%2Bnajd&pg=PA214 'Engaging Evil and Excess in Israel/Palestine,'] in William C.Olson, Thomas  J. Csordas (eds.,) ''Engaging Evil: A Moral Anthropology,' [[Berghahn Books]] 2019 {{isbn|978-1-789-20213-7}} pp199-223 pp.213-214.</ref><ref name=fisk>[[Robert Fisk]], [https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/the-suffering-of-sderot-how-its-true-inhabitants-were-wiped-from-israel-s-maps-and-memories-8348734.html The suffering of Sderot: how its true inhabitants were wiped from Israel's maps and memories] [[The Independent]] 26 November 2012.</ref> 

Sderot was founded in 1951 as a [[ma'abarot|transit camp]] for Jewish immigrants, primarily from [[Kurdistan]] and [[Iran]]. The settlement initially housed 80 families and was originally called Gabim Dorot,<ref>''Israel Directory,'' Miksam Limited, 2003 p.212.</ref> before later being renamed Sderot, a symbolic nod to the numerous avenues of trees planted in the Negev to combat [[desertification]] and beautify the arid landscape. Like many localities in the [[Negev]], a green motif was chosen in keeping with the Zionist vision of "making the desert bloom."<ref name="sasson137"/>

The development served as part of a chain of settlements designed to block infiltration from Gaza.<ref name ="LaGuardia" >Anton La Guardia, [https://books.google.com/books?id=Fi8qtb7qcEMC&pg=PT311  ''Holy Land, Unholy War: Israelis and Palestinians,''] Penguin 2007 p.311</ref><ref name="heeb" /> Permanent housing was completed three years later, in 1954.<ref name="heeb" />

[[File:PikiWiki Israel 6558 Settlements in Israel.jpg|thumb|School in Sderot, early 1950s]]

From the mid-1950s, the town attracted many Moroccan Jews.<ref name="LaGuardia" /><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Society_&_Culture/geo/Sderot.html|title=Sderot - Jewish Virtual Library |work=jewishvirtuallibrary.org}}</ref> [[History of the Jews in Romania|Romanian Jewish]] immigrants also began settling in Sderot. In 1956, Sderot was recognized as a [[local council (Israel)|local council]].<ref name="hareuveni908" /> In the 1961 census, North African immigrants, mostly from [[History of the Jews in Morocco|Morocco]], made up 87% of the population, with 11% from Kurdistan.<ref name="haaretz-rapoport" />

{{Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel}}

Sderot absorbed another large wave of immigrants from the former [[Soviet Union]] during the [[1990s post-Soviet aliyah]]. Immigrants from [[Ethiopia]] also arrived during this time, doubling its population. In 1996, it was declared a [[city council (Israel)|city]]. A number of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip were resettled in Sderot beginning in 1997 after cooperating with the [[Shin Bet]].<ref name="ynet-hadad" />

===21st century===
{{See also|Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel|Gaza war}}
[[File:Qassam-Rockets-Sderot.jpg|thumb|The remnants of [[Qassam rockets]] fired on Sderot]]
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Sderotchilddrawing.jpg|right|thumb|"Someone has been wounded" – Drawing by a 7-year old Sderot resident {{deletable image-caption|Monday, 21 December 2015}}]] -->
[[File:Iron Dome near Sderot.jpg|right|thumb|[[Iron Dome]] rocket defense battery near Sderot]]
[[File:Rocketpopmap.jpeg|thumb|Sderot is located in the 10–15&nbsp;sec of [[BM-21 Grad|Grad]] rocket range]]
[[File:SderotBurningFactory1.JPG|thumb|A factory burns in Sderot after a rocket attack from the Gaza Strip in June 2014]]

From 2001, in the beginning stage of the [[Second Intifada]], the city was a target for rockets from the Gaza Strip.<ref>{{cite web | url= https://www.jpost.com/Features/In-Thespotlight/This-Week-in-History-The-first-Kassam-hits-Sderot |title = This Week in History: The first Kassam hits Sderot - Features - Jerusalem Post| date=April 15, 2011 }}</ref> Rocket fire intensified after the [[Israeli disengagement from Gaza]] in 2005,<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.jta.org/2006/12/05/archive/as-the-rockets-continue-to-fall-anxiety-and-depression-grip-sderot | title=As the Rockets Continue to Fall, Anxiety and Depression Grip Sderot| date=2006-12-05}}</ref> with the city sustaining constant rocket fire from [[Qassam rockets]] launched by [[Hamas]] and [[Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine|Islamic Jihad]].<ref name="sderotmedia" />

In May 2007, a significant increase in shelling from Gaza prompted the temporary evacuation of thousands of residents.<ref name="iht" /> By November 23, 2007, 6,311 rockets had fallen on the city.<ref name="israelinsider-sackett" /> ''[[Yediot Ahronoth]]'' reported that during the summer of 2007, 3,000 of the city's 22,000 residents (consisting mostly of the city's key upper- and middle-class residents) left for other areas, out of Qassam rocket range. Russian billionaire [[Arcadi Gaydamak]] organised a series of relief programs for residents unable to leave.<ref name="jpost-leavetown" />
On December 12, 2007, after more than 20 rockets landed in the Sderot area in a single day, including a direct hit to one of the main avenues, Sderot mayor Eli Moyal announced his resignation, citing the government's failure to halt the rocket attacks.<ref name="bbc1" /> Moyal was persuaded to retract his resignation.{{cn|date=August 2024}}

In a gesture of solidarity, [[El Al]] (Israel's national airline) named one of its [[Boeing 777]] passenger planes ''Sderot'' (4X-ECE).<ref name="infolive" />

In January 2008, the [[Jewish Community Relations Council]] of New York organized a display of 4,200 red balloons outside the [[headquarters of the United Nations]].<ref name="Ynet" /> Each balloon represented a Qassam rocket that had been fired into Sderot,<ref name="Haaretz" /> where for years the town and its surrounding area have been under near-constant bombardment by thousands of rockets and mortar shells fired from Gaza.<ref name="JPost" /> Consul [[David Saranga]], who conceptualized the display, said he used the balloons as an opportunity to call upon the international community to stop ignoring what's happening in Israel.<ref name="JC" /> The balloon display made headlines in New York City papers as well as international publications.<ref name="test" />

In January 2008, British journalist Seth Freedman of ''[[The Guardian]]'' described Sderot as a city of near-deserted streets and empty malls and cafes.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2008/jan/18/sderotbeseigedandabandoned|title=Sderot: {{sic|besei|ged|nolink=y}} and abandoned|first=Seth|last=Freedman|newspaper=The Guardian |date=January 18, 2008|access-date=August 18, 2019|via=www.theguardian.com}}</ref> In March 2008, the mayor said that the population had dropped by 10–15%, while aid organizations said the figure was closer to 25%. Many of the families that remained were those who could not afford to move out or were unable to sell their homes.<ref name="ynet-sderot1"/> Studies found that air raid sirens and explosions have caused severe psychological trauma in some residents.<ref name="haaretz-sharfman" /> According to a study carried out at [[Sapir Academic College]] in 2007, some 75% of residents aged 4–18 were suffering from [[PTSD]], including sleeping disorders and severe anxiety, in the wake of rocket attacks on the city, and 1,000 residents were receiving psychiatric treatment at the community mental health center.<ref name="natal" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.irinnews.org/report/76438/israel-opt-relentless-rocket-attacks-take-psychological-toll-on-children-in-sderot#sthash.MEKDqNXC.dpuf|title=IRIN Middle East - ISRAEL-OPT: Relentless rocket attacks take psychological toll on children in Sderot - Israel - OPT - Children - Conflict - Health & Nutrition|work=IRINnews|date=2008-01-27}}</ref> From mid-June 2007 to mid-February 2008, 771 rockets and 857 mortar bombs were fired at Sderot and the western Negev, an average of three or four each a day.<ref name="zionism-israel"/>

During the [[Gaza War (2008–09)|Gaza War]] in December 2008 and January 2009, between 50 and 60 rockets were fired at Sderot per week, causing about half the city's residents to temporarily evacuate. The war ended regular rocket fire from Gaza and the city experienced a revitalization. By 2009, demand for apartments was outweighing supply, a new sports complex largely funded by donor aid had opened, a new shopping mall was being built, and the assistance that the city had received due to concern over the years of rocket fire meant that Sderot now had better community, educational, and recreational services than many other Negev [[development town]]s.<ref>{{Cite journal | url=https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2009/1231/In-Israel-embattled-Sderot-comes-back-to-life-after-rocket-barrages-of-Gaza-war |title = In Israel, embattled Sderot comes back to life after rocket barrages of Gaza war|journal = Christian Science Monitor|date = 2009-12-31}}</ref> The city sustained rocket fire on occasion over the following years, including during [[2014 Israel-Gaza conflict|Operation Protective Edge]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-rocket-battered-sderot-waiting-for-the-next-war/ | title=In rocket-battered Sderot, waiting for the next war| website=[[The Times of Israel]]}}</ref>

In 2010, after a decline in charitable donations, the municipality revealed that it was on the verge of bankruptcy.<ref name="haaretz2010" />

[[File:Sderot in Independence Day 2019 IZE-281.jpg|thumb|[[Israel Defense Forces]] exhibition in Sderot, 2019]]

In 2011, a Sderot resident filed a million dollar lawsuit against two Canadian organizations raising funds for a Canadian ship to join the [[2010 Gaza Freedom Flotilla|Gaza Freedom Flotilla]]. According to the lawyers, "The Canadian Boat's raison d'être is to aid and abet the terrorist organization that rules Gaza." The suit alleges that these actions violate Canadian laws that prohibit aid to terror groups.<ref name="jpost-friedman" />

{{Anchor|Sderot cinema}}"Sderot cinema" is a name given to gatherings at a hill in Sderot, where over 50 locals would come to watch the bombing of the [[Gaza Strip]] during the last four wars.<ref name="McKernan">{{cite web |quote=On a panoramic ridge facing west on the edge of town, home to a nursery school, Sderot's residents used to gather during the four previous wars between Israel and Hamas since the group seized control of the strip in 2007. They had cheered and whistled as the bombs rained down on Gaza's trapped civilians, sipping beers and settling in as though watching a fireworks display as the conflicts unfolded less than a mile away in Beit Hanoun, a town in the strip’s north-east corner during the [[2014 Israel–Gaza conflict]]. |first1=Bethan |last1=McKernan |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/nov/04/four-weeks-on-horror-lingers-in-israels-silent-kibbutzim |title=Four weeks on, horror lingers in Israel's silent kibbutzim |work= [[The Guardian]] |date=2023-11-04 |accessdate=2023-11-18}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/07/13/israel-sderot-gaza_n_5582032.html|title=These Israelis Eat Popcorn At 'Sderot Cinema' As They Watch Bombs Fall On Gaza|work=The Huffington Post UK|date=2014-07-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.news.com.au/world/middle-east/locals-cheer-bombing-from-sderot-cinema-as-israel-steps-up-attacks-on-hamas-in-gaza-strip/story-fnh81ifq-1226988013066|title=Popcorn at front-row seats of war|date=13 July 2014|work=NewsComAu}}</ref> The name was coined by a Danish journalist who snapped a photo of it and posted it on [[Twitter]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://english.alarabiya.net/en/media/digital/2014/07/12/Picture-purporting-to-show-Israelis-cheering-missile-Gaza-strikes-goes-viral.html|title=Al Aravya: 'Sderot cinema:' Israelis watch latest from Gaza|work=alarabiya.net|date=12 July 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kristeligt-dagblad.dk/2014-07-11/when-bombs-receive-applause|title=When bombs receive applause|work=Kristeligt Dagblad|date=2014-07-11}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.jpost.com/Operation-Protective-Edge/Twitter-photo-showing-Israelis-cheering-Gaza-bombing-goes-viral-362474|title=Twitter photo showing Israelis 'cheering' Gaza bombing goes viral|work=The Jerusalem Post - JPost.com|date=July 12, 2014 }}</ref> Similar events happened in [[Operation Cast Lead]] in 2009,<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/15/world/middleeast/israelis-watch-bombs-drop-on-gaza-from-front-row-seats.html?_r=0 ''Israelis Watch Bombs Drop on Gaza From Front-Row Seats'']. New York Times, 14 July 2014</ref> after which some critics decided to refer to the hill as "Hill of Shame".<ref name="McKernan" /><ref>[http://www.miftah.org/display.cfm?DocId=18589&CategoryId=5 ''Hill of Shame where Gaza bombing is spectator sport'']. Martin Fletcher and Yonit Farago, [[The Times]], 13 January 2009</ref> Sderot residents have complained about the media portrayal.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israelis-gather-hill-watch-gaza-strip-670043702|title=Viewers at 'Sderot cinema' complain over media portrayal|work=Middle East Eye}}</ref> 

In May 2019, the [[Israeli Air Force]] held a special [[flypast]] (aerial display) over Sderot (in addition to [[Yom Ha'atzmaut]] flypast), in order to salute the residents of Sderot who suffer continuously from [[Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel]].

On October 7, 2023, [[Hamas]] gunmen [[Battle of Sderot|attacked Sderot]], engaging in firefights with Israeli police and civilians in the streets and occupying the town's police station.<ref>">{{Cite news |date=7 October 2023 |work=Trend News Agency |title=Armed group from Gaza seizes police station in Israel's Sderot |url=https://en.trend.az/world/israel/3808401.html |access-date=7 October 2023 }}</ref> About eighteen members of the Israeli police were killed during the fighting.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Zitun |first1=Yoav |last2=Curiel |first2=Ilana |last3=Ben Kimon |first3=Elisha |last4=Turgeman |first4=Meir |last5=Moskovitz |first5=Israel |last6=Green Shaulov |first6=Roni |date=2023-10-07 |title=Commanders, soldiers, police officers: The names of the heroes who died defending Israel |language=en |work=Ynetnews |url=https://www.ynetnews.com/article/s1rxsrj11a |access-date=2023-10-19}}</ref> Fighting continued through the night until security forces retook the police station, which was demolished in case more terrorists remained inside. Early estimates stated that at least 20 civilians were killed as they were waiting at bus stops, walking down the street, and driving in their cars.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Cardia |first1=Alexander |last2=Khavin |first2=Dmitriy |last3=Blumenfeld |first3=David |date=2023-10-10 |title=Video: 'Everyone Died': How Gunmen Killed Dozens In Sderot |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/video/world/middleeast/100000009124862/palestinian-gunmen-killing-sderot.html |access-date=2023-10-19 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>  Of the 36,000 residents of the city, 90% were evacuated during the days after the massacre.<ref name="Reborn">{{cite news |last1=Keinon |first1=Herb |title=Paradigms will need to shift for Sderot to be reborn - analysis |url=https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-768509 |access-date=19 October 2023 |publisher=The Jerusalem Post |date=15 October 2023}}</ref> Most of them were housed in hotels evenly split between [[Eilat]] and the rest of the country that were paid for by the Israeli government.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |last=Lidor |first=Canaan |date=2024-03-03 |title=No longer a ghost town, Sderot welcomes returnees and a renewed sense of normalcy |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/no-longer-a-ghost-town-sderot-welcomes-returnees-and-a-renewed-sense-of-normalcy/ |access-date=2025-07-31 |work=The Times of Israel |language=en-US |issn=0040-7909}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last=Estrin |first=Daniel |date=2024-04-11 |title=Israelis are returning to Sderot, the biggest city attacked by Hamas |url=https://www.npr.org/2024/04/11/1243653270/sderot-israel-gaza-october-7-hamas-war |access-date=2025-07-31 |work=NPR |language=en}}</ref>

As Israeli military actions in the [[Gaza war]] reduced the risk to Sderot, schools were reopened in March 2024. By April, 85% of the pre-war population had returned, subsidized by government grants to return as their initial temporary housing grants were wound down. By August 2024, 90% of the pre-war population had returned.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-08-23 |title=Back to School in Wartime |url=https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/community/articles/back-school-wartime-sderot |access-date=2025-07-31 |website=Tablet Magazine |language=en}}</ref> During the war, viewing platforms on hilltops overlooking the devastation in [[northern Gaza]] once again became tourist attractions.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sderot |first=Sally Hayden in |last2=Israel |title=From a viewing platform in Israel, observers watch Gaza’s destruction through binoculars |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/world/middle-east/2025/07/28/from-a-viewing-platform-in-israel-observers-watch-gazas-destruction-through-binoculars/ |access-date=2025-07-31 |website=The Irish Times |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2025-07-23 |title='The best show in town': From a hilltop in Israel, observers have a sinister view of Gaza bombings |url=https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2025/07/23/the-best-show-in-town-from-a-hilltop-in-israel-observers-have-a-sinister-view-of-gaza-bombings_6743627_4.html |access-date=2025-07-31 |language=en}}</ref>

==Demographics==
According to the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), in 2010 the city had a population of 21,900. The national makeup of the city was 94% [[Jew]]ish, 5.5% other non-Arabs, and [[Arabs]] less than 1%. There were 10,600 males and 10,500 females. The population growth rate in 2010 was 0.5%.

==Economy==
In 2008, the average wage for a salaried worker in Sderot was {{Currency|5,261|ILS|linked=yes}}.<ref name="themarker-survey"/>

Hollandia International, founded in 1981, a company that manufactures and exports high-end mattresses, moved its sole manufacturing center to Sderot in the 1990s. After 11 years there, it decided in 2008 to relocate due to rocket attacks that hit the city and the factory.<ref>{{cite news |title=Hollandia factory to leave Sderot |date=20 January 2008 |url= https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/1,7340,L-3496320,00.html |work=[[Ynetnews]] |access-date=8 October 2023}}</ref>

The [[Osem (company)|Osem]] plant in Sderot, opened in 1981, is the region's major employer, with 480 workers. 170 products are manufactured there, including [[Bamba (snack)|Bamba]], [[Bisli]], Mana Hama instant noodle and rice dishes, instant soup powders, [[shkedei marak]], ketchup and sauces.<ref name="haaretz-tsoref" />

The Menorah Candle factory, located in Sderot, exports [[Hanukkah]] candles all over the world.<ref name="haaretz-azoulay" />

[[Nestlé]] maintains a research and development facility in Sderot,<ref name="nestle" /> established in 2002. Its production facilities for breakfast cereals are also located in Sderot.<ref name="ynet-nestle" />

[[Amdocs]] has a plant in Sderot and an industrial zone is under development.<ref name="haaretz-backtolife"/>

In 2012, the government approved nearly $59 million worth of economic benefits for Sderot to strengthen the economy, boost employment, and subsidize psychosocial programs for the city's residents.<ref name="jta1" />

==Culture==
An unusually high ratio of singers, instrumentalists, composers and poets have come from Sderot.<ref name="jpost.com" />
[[File:The Harp Player in Sderot.jpg|thumb|Harp sculpture, Sderot town square]]
Several popular bands have been formed by musicians who practiced in Sderot's [[bomb shelters]] as teenagers.<ref name="haaretz-ben-shimon" /><ref name="thejewishweek1" /><ref name="saada-ophir" /> As an immigrant town with high unemployment experiencing a dramatic musical success, as bands blend international sounds with the music of their [[Moroccan Jews in Israel|Moroccan immigrant parents]], it has been compared to Liverpool in the 1960s.<ref name="somethingjewish1" /><ref name="sderotmotive" /> Among the notable bands are [[Teapacks]]<ref name="teapacks" /> [[Knesiyat Hasekhel]] and [[Sfatayim]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.israel-music.com/sefatayim/ |title=Sefatayim |publisher=Israel-music.com |access-date=2010-04-04}}</ref> Well-known musicians from Sderot include [[Shlomo Bar]], [[Kobi Oz]], [[Haïm Ulliel]] and [[Smadar Levi]].
The winner of the Israeli version of "[[American Idol]]" 2011 was [[Hagit Yaso]], a local Sderot singer of [[Ethiopian Jews|Ethiopian]] origin.

Israeli poet [[Shimon Adaf]] was born in Sderot,<ref name="jpost.com"/> as well as the actor and entertainer [[Maor Cohen]]. Adaf dedicated a poem to the city in his 1997 book ''Icarus' Monologue''.

In 2007, Jewish-American documentary filmmaker [[Laura Bialis]] immigrated to Israel, and decided to settle in Sderot "to find out what it means to live in a never-ending war, and to document the lives and music of musicians under fire".<ref name="israel21c" /> Her film ''[[Sderot: Rock in the Red Zone]]'' focuses on young musicians living under the daily threat of Qassams.<ref name="forward1" /><ref name="wjd1" /><ref name="sdjw1" />

Politically, the town leans heavily to the right.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.timesofisrael.com/likud-in-jerusalem-zionist-union-in-tel-aviv/|title=Likud in Jerusalem, Zionist Union in Tel Aviv|work=The Times of Israel}}</ref>

==Transportation==
[[File:תחנת שדרות ביום הפתיחה.jpg|thumb|[[Sderot railway station]]]]
Sderot is accessible by [[Highway 34 (Israel)|Highway 34]] and Route 232.

The [[Ashkelon–Beersheba railway]], a new railway line that connected Sderot with [[Tel Aviv]] and [[Beersheba]], was inaugurated in December 2013. The [[Sderot railway station]], located on the outskirts of the city at the southern entrance, was opened on December 24, 2013. It is the first in Israel to be armored against rocket fire.<ref name="timesofisrael1" />

==Education==
[[File:Campus sapir.jpg|thumb|Sapir Academic College]]
According to CBS, there are 14 schools and 3,578 students in the city. They are spread out as eleven elementary schools and 2,099 elementary school students, and six high schools and 1,479 high school students.{{clarify|date=October 2023|reason=11+6=17, not 14 schools}} 56.5% of 12th grade students were entitled to a matriculation certificate in 2001. [[Sapir Academic College]]<ref name="sapir" /> and the [[Hesder Yeshiva of Sderot]] are located in Sderot. All schools in the city and 120 bus stops have been fortified against missile attacks.<ref name="jpost-dudkevitch" />

== Urban forest ==
In 2024, the city of Sderot was chosen to serve as a model for the implementation of [[urban forestry]] principles in Israel.<ref name=":2" /> According to Noam Bar-Levi, director of the “Derech Tzel” (“Path of Shade”) organization, cities in Israel suffer from a “severe shortage of shade” and are experiencing increasing heat.<ref name=":2" /> The cultivation of an urban forest in Sderot will enable the city to improve residents’ quality of life and cope with the effects of the climate crisis. The urban forest provides shade and reduces urban temperatures.<ref name=":2" />

The project, initiated by the “Derech Tzel” association, is funded by the Nadiv Foundation and the Israeli government.<ref name=":2" /> The “Vontaat” organization is also participating in the initiative.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=ממשבר לצמיחה: פרויקט עיר-יער שדרות – לשיקום, ריפוי וחיזוק החוסן הקהילתי |url=https://13tv.co.il/item/mood/vacation-in-israel/q48n2-903811014/ |access-date=2025-11-08 |website=רשת 13 |language=he}}</ref> The project is also referred to as “Sderot Forest City.”<ref name=":3" /> Channel 13 reported that the initiative will lead to Sderot’s streets being lined with fruit trees and vegetable gardens from which residents will be able to pick produce for their personal use.<ref name=":3" />

==Twin towns – sister cities==
Sderot is [[Twin towns and sister cities|twinned]] with:
*{{flagicon|FRA}} [[Antony, Hauts-de-Seine|Antony]], [[France]]
*{{flagicon|GER}} [[Zehlendorf (Berlin)]], [[Germany]]<ref>[http://derberliton.de/200906102585/Berlin/2585-sderotplatz-in-zehlendorf Sderotplatz in Zehlendorf] June 10, 2009. Retrieved August 23, 2012.</ref>

==People==<!-- Please respect alphabetical order -->
*[[Miri Bohadana]], model
*Kim Edri, beauty queen, and former Miss Israel
*[[Kobi Oz]], musician
*[[Amir Peretz]], politician former defense minister
*[[Hagit Yaso]], singer

==See also==
* [[List of Israeli twin towns and sister cities]]
* [[Merkhav Mugan]]
* [[Sderot Cinematheque]]

==References==
{{Reflist|refs=
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<ref name="haaretz-sharfman">{{cite news |last=Sharfman |first=Jake |url=https://www.haaretz.com/news/tiny-organization-fights-to-make-sderot-s-voice-heard-1.1883 |title=Tiny organization fights to make Sderot's voice heard|publisher=[[Haaretz]]|date=2009-12-17 |access-date=2012-06-07}}</ref>
<ref name="haaretz-tsoref">{{cite news |last=Tsoref |first=Ayala |url=https://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/business/nestle-honcho-drops-in-to-see-bamba-baby-1.282752 |title=Nestle honcho drops in to see Bamba baby |newspaper=Haaretz |date=2009-08-27 |access-date=2014-02-05}}</ref>
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<ref name="hareuveni908">[[#refHaReuveni|HaReuveni (1999)]], p. 908</ref>
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<ref name="JC">[http://www.thejc.com/articles/meet-david-saranga-man-whose-campaigns-are-rebranding-israel Meet David Saranga, the man whose campaigns are rebranding Israel], David Russell, The Jewish Chronicle, Published May 23, 2008.</ref>
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<ref name="jpost.com">{{cite news|url=https://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?apage=1&cid=1150885827590&pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull |title=Grapevine: Away from the rockets' red glare |author=Geer Fay Cashman |date=June 24, 2006 |work=The Jerusalem Post |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110813132508/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?apage=1&cid=1150885827590&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |archive-date=August 13, 2011 |access-date=February 5, 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
<ref name="jpost-dudkevitch">{{cite news |author=Margot Dudkevitch |date=15 November 2011 |url=https://www.jpost.com/Jerusalem-Report/Israel/Living-under-the-rockets-roar |title=Living under the rocket's roar |publisher=Jpost.com |work=The Jerusalem Report |access-date=2012-06-07}}</ref>
<ref name="jpost-friedman">{{cite news |last=Friedman |first=Ron |url=https://www.jpost.com/Diplomacy-and-Politics/Sderot-rocket-victims-sue-Gaza-flotilla-organizers |title=Sderot rocket victims sue Gaza flotilla organizers |publisher=The Jerusalem Post |date=June 8, 2011 |access-date=2014-02-05}}</ref>
<ref name="jpost-leavetown">{{cite news|url=https://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1192380747715&pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull |title=3,000 Sderot Residents Have Left Town |publisher=[[The Jerusalem Post]] |date=2007-11-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110813132303/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1192380747715&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |archive-date=August 13, 2011 |access-date=2014-02-05 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
<ref name="jta1">{{cite news|author=Marcy Oster |date=January 1, 2012 |url=https://www.jta.org/news/article/2012/01/01/3090976/sderot-and-environs-get-59-million-in-government-benefits-for-2012 |title=Sderot and environs get $59 million in gov't benefits for '12 |publisher=Jta.org |access-date=2012-06-07 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121114030721/http://www.jta.org/news/article/2012/01/01/3090976/sderot-and-environs-get-59-million-in-government-benefits-for-2012 |archive-date=2012-11-14 }}</ref>
<ref name="morris1">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uM_kFX6edX8C  |first=Benny |last=Morris |author-link=Benny Morris |year=2004 |title=The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem Revisited|isbn=978-0-521-00967-6 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=uM_kFX6edX8C&pg=PA258 258]}}</ref>

<!--<ref name="khalidi128">Khalidi (1992), p. 128</ref>-->

<ref name="natal">{{cite web|author=Ginter, Davida|url=http://www.natal.org.il/?CategoryID=244&ArticleID=316&Page=8 |title=כך הפקירה המדינה את נפגעי החרדה |publisher=Natal.org.il |date=2007-11-26 |access-date=2012-06-07}}</ref>
<ref name="nestle">{{cite web|url=http://www.nestle.com/NestleResearch/GlobalRnD/ResearchCenters/RnDSderot.htm?wbc_purpose=Basic&WBCMODE=PresentationUnpublis|title=R&D Sderot, Israel|publisher=Nestle.com|access-date=2010-04-04}}{{Dead link|date=January 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
<ref name="saada-ophir">"Borderland Pop: Arab Jewish Musicians and the Politics of Performance", Galit Saada-Ophir,  Hebrew University of Jerusalem, ''Cultural Anthropology'' Volume 21 Issue 2, Pages 205–233, 7 Jan 2008</ref>
<ref name="sapir">[http://eng.sapir.ac.il/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=86&Itemid=157 Sapir Academic College] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100113110152/http://eng.sapir.ac.il/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=86&Itemid=157 |date=January 13, 2010 }}</ref>
<ref name="sasson137">[[#refSasson|Sasson (2010)]], p. 137</ref>
<ref name="sderotmedia">{{cite web |last=Silverman |first=Anav |url=http://sderotmedia.com/?p=372|title=A City Under Siege: An Inside View of Sderot, Israel|publisher=Sderot Media Center|date=2007-09-20|access-date=2008-10-20}}</ref>
<ref name="sderotmotive">{{cite web|url=http://sderotmovie.com/blog/2008/12/13/a-year-in-sderot |title=The Official Sderot Movie Website :: Movie : Music : Musicians |publisher=Sderotmovie.com |date=2008-12-13 |access-date=2010-04-04 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100312093604/http://sderotmovie.com/blog/2008/12/13/a-year-in-sderot/ |archive-date=2010-03-12 }}</ref>
<ref name="sdjw1">{{cite news|title=Only Thirty-Six Hours in Sderot|last=Lash Balint|first=Judy|publisher=[[San Diego Jewish World]]|date=2008-03-02|url=http://www.jewishsightseeing.com/2008-SDJW/20080302-jewish-sun53.html#Balint|access-date=2008-10-20|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080830025806/http://jewishsightseeing.com/2008-SDJW/20080302-jewish-sun53.html#Balint|archive-date=2008-08-30}}</ref>
<ref name="somethingjewish1">[http://www.somethingjewish.co.uk/articles/2310_teapacks_interview.htm Teapacks interview], Caroline Westbrook, something Jewish, 09/05/2007</ref>
<ref name="teapacks">{{cite web|url=http://www.teapacks.com |title=teapacks |publisher=teapacks |access-date=2010-04-04}}</ref>
<ref name="test">[https://web.archive.org/web/20121025120315/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1A2-aab872a7-22d7-4f24-ac98-614db93697a7.html Balloons for Sderot], AP Images, Published January 2008. {{subscription required}}</ref>
<ref name="thejewishweek1">{{cite web|url=http://www.thejewishweek.com/viewArticle/c52_a12477/Editorial__Opinion/Gary_Rosenblatt.html#|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090507094241/http://www.thejewishweek.com/viewArticle/c52_a12477/Editorial__Opinion/Gary_Rosenblatt.html%23|url-status=dead|title=Sderot, A Love Story, The Jewish Week, Gary Rosenblatt, 06/18/2008|archive-date=May 7, 2009|access-date=August 18, 2019}}</ref>
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<ref name="ukinisrael.fco.gov.uk">{{cite web|url=http://ukinisrael.fco.gov.uk/en/news/?view=PressR&id=603684582 |title=Ambassador visits Sderot, impressed by 'spirit of town' |publisher=Ukinisrael.fco.gov.uk |access-date=2012-06-07 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120318232754/http://ukinisrael.fco.gov.uk/en/news/?view=PressR&id=603684582 |archive-date=2012-03-18 }}</ref>
<ref name="wjd1">{{cite news |title=Rebel With a Cause|last=Fuma |first=Simona |publisher=World Jewish Digest|date=2008-04-23|url=http://www.worldjewishdigest.com/ME2/dirmod.asp?sid=&nm=&type=Publishing&mod=Publications%3A%3AArticle&mid=8F3A7027421841978F18BE895F87F791&tier=4&id=0A6EBD249B8C4CF49401601D6627FC42|access-date=2008-10-20}} {{Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref>
<ref name="Ynet">[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/1,7340,L-3498487,00.html 4,200 balloons released in NY to protest Qassam fire], By Neta Sela, Ynet News, January 24, 2008.</ref>
<ref name="ynet-hadad">{{cite news |last=Hadad |first=Shmulik |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3406314,00.html |title=Palestinian Collaborator: Terrorists Only Understand Force |publisher=[[Ynetnews]] |date=2007-05-30 |access-date=2008-10-20}}</ref>
<ref name="ynet-nestle">{{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3725743,00.html |title=Nestle producing new breakfast cereal in Sderot - Israel Business, Ynetnews |publisher=[[Ynetnews]]|date=1995-06-20 |access-date=2010-04-04}}</ref>
<ref name="ynet-sderot1">{{cite news|last=Hadad |first=Shmulik |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3520956,00.html |title=Sderot: Those Who Can Afford It Have Already Left |publisher=[[Ynetnews]] |date=2008-03-19 |access-date=2008-10-20}}</ref>
<ref name="zionism-israel">{{cite web|url=http://zionism-israel.com/vic/Sderot_Qassam_Statistics_Summary_2007.htm|title=Qassam Rockets&nbsp;— Background and Statistics|publisher=Zionism-Israel.com|access-date=2008-10-20}}</ref>
}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite book |last=HaReuveni |first=Immanuel |year=1999 |title=Lexicon of the Land of Israel|publisher=Yedioth Ahronoth Publishing|isbn=965-448-413-7|language=he |ref=refHaReuveni}}
* {{cite book |editor=Avi Sasson |year=2010 |title=Sderot |publisher=Ariel Publishing and Makom Company|language=he |ref=refSasson}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Sderot}}
*[http://sderot.worldmedianetworks.com/ Sderot Media Center] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150926211356/http://sderot.worldmedianetworks.com/ |date=September 26, 2015 }}
*[http://www.othervoice.org/welcome-eng.htm The Other Voice]
*[http://hopeforsderot.com/ Humanitarian aid organization in Sderot]
*[http://sderotmovie.com/ Sderot; The Movie]
*[http://www.short.co.il/ Sderot portal—Hebrew] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161016013121/http://www.short.co.il/ |date=October 16, 2016 }}
*[http://www.sderotmedia.com/ Sderot Information Center for the Western Negev]
*[http://www.matesderot.co.il/index_en.asp The committee for a secure Sderot]
*[http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/postglobal/america/2007/12/israeli_soldiers_us_sderot_terrorism.html Sderot in ''The Washington Post'']
*[https://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/12/world/middleeast/12israel.html Sderot Journal: An Israeli Playground, Fortified Against Rockets]

{{South District (Israel)}}
{{Largest Israeli cities}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Sderot| ]]
[[Category:Cities in Southern District (Israel)]]
[[Category:Cities in Israel]]
[[Category:Development towns]]
[[Category:Israeli casualties in the Second Intifada]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1951]]
[[Category:Gaza envelope]]
[[Category:1951 establishments in Israel]]