At the end of the fighting, when the capture of the city was complete, the remaining Arab residents were concentrated in the old core of Lod. This area was closed by order of the Military Governor, and entry was permitted only with his permission. Apart from those responsible for security, no Jewish civilians lived in Lod. Since entry to the city was restricted to those with a permit and movement was virtually non-existent, only a few of the immigrants who arrived in 1948 knew of its existence, and so the city remained deserted until December 1948.

At the end of 1948, the Jewish Agency's Absorption Department appointed Yosef Slifer as head of the absorption team in Lod. He and a handful of veteran workers were sent to prepare the city for the arrival of new settlers. The first immigrants were supposed to arrive from the transit camps and immigrant houses, but they were reluctant to go to Lod.

The physical condition of the city was far from inspiring. The tents and tin shacks of the transit camps seemed to the immigrants to be better that the dilapidated houses in Lod.

Since the rubble had not been cleared from the city before the first residents arrived, the place looked very neglected. The first immigrants who were brought there for a tour did not return. 

The first group of immigrants to arrive in Lod included several families from Poland and Romania.  Most of them refused to stay and preferred to return to the transit camp. Another group consisted mainly of immigrants from Bulgaria. Since most of them were members of Zionist movements in their countries of origin and were convinced that the Land of Israel could only be acquired through suffering, they were willing to make sacrifices. They settled in the intact buildings that remained in the western part of the city. The windows had no glass, and glaziers had not yet arrived in the city. The windows were therefore sealed with blankets, which the immigrants received from the Jewish Agency. Planks were turned into makeshift doors, which somewhat blocked the cold winter winds.

Along with the group of settlers, several veterans of the country who had come from kibbutzim also arrived in Lod. Due to their positions in the Jewish Agency and the Government, they decided to set a personal example and remain with the immigrants they had taken in. And so, in a half-destroyed city, without water, sewage, or lighting, the first settlers remained, proving to all those who were afraid to come to Lod that it was possible to live there and “stay alive.”

Gradually, without any persuasion on the part of those already absorbered, thousands of settlers from the transit camps in Be'er Ya'akov, from immigrant houses in Ra'anana, and from the settlements in the Jerusalem Corridor infiltrated and came to Lod, and within six months (early 1949), the number of residents reached 5,000.

As the number of residents grew, the need to abolish military rule and establish a municipal authority to take care of the community's needs became apparent. In April 1949, civilian rule began in the city, and in July 1949, Lod was declared a city, thus ending the Military Governor's role.

Slowly, without any encouragement from the authorities, thousands of settlers from the transit camps in Be'er Ya'akov, the immigrant houses in Ra'anana, and the settlements in the Jerusalem Corridor moved to Lod, and within less than six months, the population reached 5,000 (at the beginning of 1949).

As the number of residents grew, the need to abolish military rule and establish a municipal authority to take care of the community's needs became apparent. In April 1949, civilian rule began in the city.

The powers of the military governor were gradually reduced, and at the beginning of the month of Tammuz 5709 (July 1949), shortly after Lod was declared a city, the Military Governor ended his term.

From: Vakar, Ora, 1977, Lod - Historical Geography, published by Goma and the Lod Municipality - Cherikover.