Migdal HaEmek

Migdal HaEmek (Hebrew: מִגְדַּל הָעֶמֶק, also officially spelt Migdal HaEmeq, Arabic: مجدال هعيمق‎) is a city in the North District of Israel. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), at the end of 2007 the city had a total population of 24,800. There is a tower to the north-east, above the town.

History

Prior to 1953, the area nearest to where Migdal Haemek was founded was an Arab village named al-Mujaydil. It had existed there since as early as 1596 during the Ottoman era.

In July 1948, the town was depopulated as a result of expulsion operations conducted by Yishuv Golani Brigade forces during the war following British withdrawal, when Israel established its independence.

Following the depopulation, Migdal HaEmek was started in 1953 as a ma'abara, before becoming a development town. The original site of the ma'abara was west of the current site, at Shimron hill. The chief rabbi of the city is Rabbi Yitzchak Dovid Grossman, who won the Israel Prize in 2004 for his social service work and outreach youth programs.