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Kiryat Arba

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Kiryat Arba
  • קִרְיַת־אַרְבַּע
  • قرية أربع
Local council
Hebrew transcription(s)
 • ISO 259Qiryat ʔarbaˁ
 • Also spelledQiryat Arba (official)
Kiryat Arba is located in the Southern West Bank
Kiryat Arba
Kiryat Arba
Location within the Southern West Bank
Coordinates: 31°31′42″N 35°7′7″E / 31.52833°N 35.11861°E / 31.52833; 35.11861
RegionWest Bank
DistrictJudea and Samaria Area
Founded1968–1971
Government
 • Head of MunicipalityIsrael Bramson[1]
Area
 • Total
4,386 dunams (4.386 km2; 1.693 sq mi)
Population
 (2024)[2]
 • Total
7,698
 • Density1,755/km2 (4,546/sq mi)
Name meaningTown of the Four [Giants]
WebsiteOfficial website

Kiryat Arba or Qiryat Arba (Hebrew: קִרְיַת־אַרְבַּע, lit. 'Town of Arba [biblical giant]') is an urban Israeli settlement on the outskirts of Hebron, in the southern Israeli-occupied West Bank. Founded in 1968, in 2024 it had a population of 7,698.

The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.[3]

Etymology

The modern settlement derives its name from a Kiryat Arba mentioned in the Hebrew Bible as the former name of Hebron and as the place where Abraham's wife, Sarah, has died: "And Sarah died at Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron)" (Genesis 23:2). The Book of Joshua says: "Now the name of Hebron formerly was Kiriath-arba; this Arba was the greatest man among the Anakim." (Joshua 14:15).[4][better source needed] It is also one of the places listed in Nehemiah where some of the people of Judah were living. There is no reference to Hebron in Nehemiah, however.[5][better source needed]

There are various explanations for the name, not mutually exclusive. According to the biblical commentator Rashi, Kiryat Arba ("Town of Arba") means either the town (kirya) of Arba, the giant who had three sons, or the town of the four giants: Anak (the son of Arba) and his three sons – Ahiman, Sheshai and Talmai – who are described as being the sons of a "giant" in Numbers 13:22: "On the way through the Negev, they (Joshua and Caleb) came to Hebron where [they saw] Ahiman, Sheshai and Talmi, descendants of the Giant (ha-anak)..."[6][better source needed]

History

Israeli settlement in Hebron

A secret government plan to establish the settlement began with the expropriation of Palestinian land, ostensibly for a military base.[7] According to the minutes of a meeting between senior officials in the office of Defense Minister Moshe Dayan in July 1970, houses would be constructed "for military purposes" before being turned over to Israeli civilians as a settlement.[7] This method of settlement foundation, which was very common at the time, was intended to give the appearance of compliance with international law.[7] Israeli settlers claimed that Israeli settlement around Hebron was justified in light of the 1929 Hebron massacre and the continuous Jewish presence in the area until then.[8] The town is a self-sufficient community, with pre-nursery through post-secondary educational institutions, medical facilities, shopping centers, a bank, and a post office. Kiryat Arba attained local council status in 1979. While Kiryat Arba is located within the territory of the Har Hebron Regional Council, it is an independent local council.[9][10]

Israeli settlers living at Kiryat Arba have been targets of multiple attacks by Palestinians. In 1980, three 20-year-old yeshiva students studying in Kiryat Arba were among the six Jews killed by terrorists after praying in the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron on Friday night.[11] Between 1981 and 1986, four people from Kiryat Arba were shot and wounded in the Hebron marketplace. In 1994, a 17-year Sarit Prigral from Kiryat Arba was shot and killed in a drive-by shooting.[12][13] In March 2003, Eli and Dina Horowitz were shot to death in their home and five others wounded.[14][15] On 26 November 2009, a Palestinian stabbed and wounded two Israelis at a Kiryat Arba gas station. The Palestinian was then shot dead by an Israeli soldier.[16] On 31 August 2010, four residents, including a pregnant woman, were shot to death in their car by Hamas militants outside Kiryat Arba.[17] The Palestinian Authority arrested the perpetrators, but promptly released them after Hamas accused it of treason. On 8 October 2010, Israeli troops killed two of the perpetrators and arrested six during a raid in Hebron. In October 2011, a Palestinian stoning attack near Kiryat Arba caused the car of a resident to overturn, killing him and his infant son. The man's handgun and wallet were then stolen.[18] Following an investigation by Shin Bet, the IDF and police, two Palestinians from Halhul were arrested for throwing the stones that caused the car to overturn, and three others were arrested for stealing the gun.[19] On 30 June 2016, a Palestinian from the nearby village of Bani Naim entered a house in Kiryat Arba and stabbed to death 13-year-old Hallel Yaffa Ariel, an Israeli-American girl. The attacker was shot to death, after also wounding a security guard who responded to the Ariel stabbing.[20]

In October 2018, Eliyahu Libman was elected council head beating Malachi Levinger, the son of Moshe Levinger, who had served as head of council for 10 years.[21]

Landmarks

Tomb of the Kach supporter and perpetrator of the 1994 Cave of the Patriarchs massacre against Palestinian worshipers, Baruch Goldstein, located at the Meir Kahane Park in Kiryat Arba

Education

The settlement has the following high schools and yeshivas:

  • The Kiryat Arba Ulpana for girls.[25]
  • The Kiryat Arba high school Yeshiva.[26]
  • The Nir Hesder Yeshiva.[27]

Local government

Heads of the local council

Voting patterns

In the 2022 election, 93 percent of voters in Kiryat Arba voted for the parties of the right-wing coalition led by Benjamin Netanyahu, while 5 percent voted for the parties of the center-left coalition led by Yair Lapid and 0.03 percent voted for the Arab parties. 67 percent of voters voted for the Religious Zionist Party-Otzma Yehudit list.[28]

Notable residents

References

  1. 1 2 3 עמר, דביר (22 September 2026). "ראש מועצת קרית ארבע הנבחר: ישראל ברמסון". ערוץ 7 (in Hebrew). Retrieved 22 September 2026.
  2. ↑ "Regional Statistics". Israel Central Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 21 March 2026.
  3. ↑ "The Geneva Convention". BBC. 10 December 2009.
  4. ↑ "Joshua 14 / Hebrew – English Bible". Mechon-Mamre. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
  5. ↑ "Bible Gateway passage: Nehemiah 11:25 - English Standard Version". Bible Gateway. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  6. ↑ "Navigating the Bible". Bible.ort. Archived from the original on 7 August 2011. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
  7. 1 2 3 Yotam Berger (28 July 2016). "Secret 1970 Document Confirms First West Bank Settlements Built on a Lie". Haaretz.
  8. ↑ Michael Feige (2009). Settling in the Hearts: Jewish Fundamentalism in the Occupied Territories. Wayne State University Press. p. 152. ISBN 978-0814327500.
  9. ↑ "Beit HaShalom – the House of Peace – a new Jewish building in Hebron". 19 March 2007. Archived from the original on 30 April 2007.
  10. ↑ Katz, Yaakov; Lazaroff, Tovah (13 April 2007). "Hebron settlers try to buy more homes". The Jerusalem Post. Archived from the original on 11 January 2012. Retrieved 30 August 2026.
  11. ↑ "Palestinian terrorist in killing of 6 Jews elected Hebron mayor". Times of Israel. 14 May 2017. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  12. ↑ "Terrorist attacks and violent incidents in Kiryat Arba". Jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
  13. ↑ "Comprehensive Listing of Terrorism Victims in Israel". www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  14. ↑ "Victims of Palestinian Violence and Terrorism Since 2000". Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
  15. ↑ "Dina Horowitz". Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  16. ↑ Fendel, Hillel (26 November 2009). "Kiryat Arba: Two Wounded in Terror Stabbing". Arutz Sheva.
  17. ↑ Kieron Monks (2 November 2010). "The Lawless West Bank: The Next Powder Keg?". Newstatesman.com. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
  18. ↑ Altman, Yair (25 September 2011). "Police conclude Kiryat Arba car crash a terror attack". YNet.
  19. ↑ Altman, Yair (6 October 2011). "2 Palestinians arrested for Palmer murder".
  20. ↑ "Israeli girl stabbed to death by Palestinian inside bedroom". BBC News. BBC. 30 June 2016. Retrieved 30 June 2016.
  21. ↑ Lazaroff, Tovah (1 November 2018) [31 October 2018]. "New Binyamin Regional Council head calls for strategic action on settlements". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 30 August 2026.
  22. ↑ Specter, Michael (6 November 1990). "Jewish Leader Kahane Slain in New York". Washington Post.
  23. 1 2 Helm, Sarah (28 February 1994). "Hebron settlers shed no tears after slaughter: Militant Jews are turning mass killer Baruch Goldstein into a folk hero, writes Sarah Helm from Kiryat Arba". The Independent. Retrieved 30 August 2026.
  24. ↑ "Man charged with attacking elderly woman at Jewish terrorist's grave". Times of Israel. 29 December 2016. Retrieved 30 August 2026.
  25. ↑ "אולפנת קרית ארבע חברון" [Kiryat Arba College, Hebron] (in Hebrew). Retrieved 30 August 2026.
  26. ↑ "ישיבה תיכונית "אור מנחם" קרית ארבע > אודות הישיבה". yatka.iscool.co.il. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  27. ↑ "ישיבת ניר קרית ארבע חברון- ישיבת הסדר גבוהה בקרית ארבע חברון תורת אבות לבנים". ישיבת ניר. Archived from the original on 22 November 2017. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  28. ↑ "The true results of the elections for the 25th Knesset". Israel: Central Elections Committee. 1 November 2022. Retrieved 7 July 2026.
  29. ↑ Maltz, Judy (4 January 2016). "The Lawyer for Jewish Terrorists Who Started Out by Stealing Rabin's Car Emblem". Haaretz. Archived from the original on 29 March 2023. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  • Wikimedia Commons logo Media related to Kiryat Arba at Wikimedia Commons
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