The Transit Camps | Dina Riklis

The transit camps were a controversial enterprise, housing hundreds of thousands of new immigrants from different parts of the world, transitioning them into becoming part of the Israeli cultural tapestry. The transit camps period (1948- 1952~), although affecting the Israeli society until these very days, is forgotten from public consciousness.

The film “Ma’abarot” is the first documentary project unfolding the story of the transit camps in a thorough and comprehensive way, unraveling the many stories of the camp residents, examining and discovering many surprising new details, shattering common stereotypes in the current Israeli discourse.

Following the story of the camps, starting from the establishment of the state of Israel, up until mid-1950s. It is based on thorough research, rare archive footage and interviews with dozens of people including former camp residents who grew up in a camp, social workers, police man and nurses who experienced the camps everyday life. During the film we are revealing many new details, most of the are the base of many controversial subjects still relevant in current Israel’s public discourse.