Beersheba is a desert city in the Negev in southern Israel. It has a rich ancient history. Modern Beersheva was founded at the start of the 20th century when a permanent settlement was established by the Ottomans. During World War I The Battle of Beersheba was part of a wider British offensive aimed at breaking the Turkish defensive line from Gaza to Beersheba. Following the declaration of Israel’s independence Egypt amassed its forces in Beersheba as a strategic base. In October 1948 it was recaptured by the Israel Defense Forces.
A large portion of the population is made up of the descendants of Sephardi Jews and Mizrahi Jews who immigrated from Arab countries after 1948, as well as smaller communities of Bene Israel and Cochin Jews from India. Since the 1990s immigrants from the former Soviet Union, as well as from India and Ethiopia have found a home there. The city is now a developing centre of technology.