captured the nearby Arab village of Al-Ghubayya al-Fawqa in a fierce battle. In the next days, troops of the Carmeli Brigade and the Palmach unit captured several other villages near Mishmar HaEmek and nearby Ein HaShofet, and destroyed them all. During the second phase of the war, on 24 December 1948 during the middle of Chanukah, Iraqi planes bombed the kibbutz, hitting the children's house, killing three 9-year-old children and a pregnant woman and injuring another four. Historian Yoav Gelber speculates that the Iraqis wanted to attack Ramat David Airbase but hit the kibbutz instead. After the establishment of Israel The kibbutz earned a name in Israel as the home of educators, authors, leaders, politicians and ministers. It also earned a name for being an important HaShomer HaTazir center. In 1950 the kibbutz established a plastics factory called Tama (, Ta'asiyot Mishmar HaEmek, "Mishmar HaEmek Industries"), which in time became a central part of the kibbutz's economy. The factory was created to provide work for the elderly, since at the time Mishmar HaEmek had the highest number of elderly residents among the entire Kibbutz Artzi network. That same year the kibbutz finished building a new large dining hall and kitchen, whose construction was delayed during the war. The dining room was Inaugurated in a day-long celebration that included a play put on by Shulamit Bat-Dori, a member of the kibbutz, telling the biblical stories of kings Saul and Solomon while hinting contemporary kibbutz issues. Members of all age groups participated in the play. Relationship with Keren Yesha In May 1950 a village and ma'abara (immigrant transit camp) called Keren Yesha was established by the Jewish Agency for Yemeni Jews next to Mishmar HaEmek. It was located atop Tel Shush, where the first members of the kibbutz settled in 1926. The village was abandoned and the residents moved to Midrakh Oz in 1953. Political rivalries affected the relations between Mishmar HaEmek and Keren Yehsa. The Hed Ha-Mizrach newspaper described life in Keren Yesha two months after its establishment; the Yemeni immigrants lived in tents and although the residents claimed to be content, they also said that there was not enough support by the authorities. The newspaper Al HaMishmar, affiliated with the Kibbutz Artzi movement, reported in 1950 that the kibbutz helped the new community and provided a number of services to the new immigrants. The newspaper reported that the Moshavim Movement,