| Netafim Crossing | |
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View of the Netafim desert |
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| Official name | Netafim Crossing מעבר נטפים |
| Crosses | Border between Israel and Egypt |
| Maintained by | Israel Airports Authority |
The Netafim Crossing (Hebrew: מעבר נטפים) is a border crossing between Israel and Egypt. It is located adjacent to Highway 12, about 12 km north of Eilat, 1 km north west of Ein Netafim. The control of the border crossing was handed over to the Israel Airports Authority in 1980; nowadays it is closed. Very seldom it is reopened under special circumstances. There are plans to reopen the border crossing passage as alternative during festivals, in coordination with the Egyptian authorities [1].
The border line is guarded accurately on both sides, on the Israeli side alongside Highway 12 (one of the two accommodation roads to Eilat) by the Israel Border Police and on the Egyptian side from some army positions.
The border crossing is in the proximity of the Israel National Trail, but not exactly on the route, nevertheless many wanderers, who have lost their way, arrive at the border crossing to drink something.
In the last day of Operation Ovda, March 10, 1949, the Negev Brigade captured the abandoned position of the Jordanian Legion in Ras al-Naqb (hebr. ראס אל-נקב) exactly where the border crossing Netafim is located today.
As well during the Suez Crisis in 1956, Ras al-Naqb was one of the important strategic positions to gain control of the Sinai Peninsula.
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