Sarona (colony)

Sarona (Hebrew: שָׁרוֹנָה) is a neighborhood of Tel Aviv, Israel which started as a German Templer colony in Ottoman Palestine in 1871. It was one of the earliest modern villages established by Europeans in Ottoman Palestine. In July 1941, the British Mandate authorities deported 188 residents of Sarona, who were considered ardent Nazi sympathisers. By the 2000s, the area had fallen into disrepair and was a haven for drug users. However, since 2003, the area has undergone massive renovation, which involved moving and relocating historical buildings before their restoration. The area is now a popular shopping district, as well as home to museums, cultural artifacts centering on its history, and IDF complexes.