Palestinian
Palestinians ( ar, الفلسطينيون, ; he, פָלַסְטִינִים, ) or Palestinian people ( ar, الشعب الفلسطيني, label=none, ), also referred to as Palestinian Arabs ( ar, الفلسطينيين العرب, label=non ...
State of Palestine
Palestine ( ar, فلسطين, Filasṭīn), officially the State of Palestine ( ar, دولة فلسطين, Dawlat Filasṭīn, label=none), is a state located in Western Asia. Officially governed by the Palestine Liberation Organization ( ...
, in the
West Bank
The West Bank ( ar, الضفة الغربية, translit=aḍ-Ḍiffah al-Ġarbiyyah; he, הגדה המערבית, translit=HaGadah HaMaʽaravit, also referred to by some Israelis as ) is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
, located 33 kilometers north of
Jericho
Jericho ( ; ar, أريحا ; he, יְרִיחוֹ ) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank. It is located in the Jordan Valley, with the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. It is the administrative seat of the Jericho ...
. Al Jiftlik is bordered by the Jordan River to the east. Nearby Palestinian localities include az-Zubaidat to the northeast, Furush Beit Dajan to the northwest,
Beit Furik
Beit Furik ( ar, بيت فوريك) is a Palestinian town located nine kilometers southeast of Nablus, in the Nablus Governorate of the State of Palestine, in the northern West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the to ...
Majdal Bani Fadil
Majdal Bani Fadil ( ar, مجدل بني فاضل) is a Palestinian town in the Nablus Governorate in northern West Bank, located southeast of Nablus. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), the town had a population of 2 ...
and
Duma
A duma (russian: дума) is a Russian assembly with advisory or legislative functions.
The term ''boyar duma'' is used to refer to advisory councils in Russia from the 10th to 17th centuries. Starting in the 18th century, city dumas were f ...
to the southwest and al-Fasayil to the south. According to the
Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics
The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS; ar, الجهاز المركزي للإحصاء الفلسطيني) is the official
statistical institution of the State of Palestine. Its main task is to provide credible statistical figures a ...
(PCBS), al-Jiftlik had a population of 3,546 in the 2007 census.
The village's total area amounts to 185,032
dunam
A dunam ( Ottoman Turkish, Arabic: ; tr, dönüm; he, דונם), also known as a donum or dunum and as the old, Turkish, or Ottoman stremma, was the Ottoman unit of area equivalent to the Greek stremma or English acre, representing the amou ...
s, of which 972 dunams are Palestinian built up areas, 77 are for commercial and industrial transport units, 64,032 are arable lands and 108,606 dunams are open spaces. Israeli settlements, including Massua, Hamra and
Argaman
Argaman ( he, אַרְגָּמָן, , Crimson) is an Israeli settlement organized as a moshav in the West Bank. Located in the Jordan Valley, eight kilometres north of the Damia Bridge with an area of 4,500 dunams, it falls under the jurisdiction ...
and military bases account for 11,293 dunams. The remaining land consists of forests and inland water.
History
The majority of the land in al-Jiftlik belonged to the al-Masa'id tribe, a powerful
Bedouin
The Bedouin, Beduin, or Bedu (; , singular ) are nomadic Arabs, Arab tribes who have historically inhabited the desert regions in the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, and Mesopotamia. The Bedouin originated in the Syrian Desert ...
family whose land spanned from Damia in Transjordan, on the east bank of the
Jordan River
The Jordan River or River Jordan ( ar, نَهْر الْأُرْدُنّ, ''Nahr al-ʾUrdunn'', he, נְהַר הַיַּרְדֵּן, ''Nəhar hayYardēn''; syc, ܢܗܪܐ ܕܝܘܪܕܢܢ ''Nahrāʾ Yurdnan''), also known as ''Nahr Al-Shariea ...
, to the borders of Jericho in the West Bank. Most of its residents are descendants of the al-Masa'id tribe and immigrants from Tammun to the north.Al Jiftlik Village Profile Applied Research Institute-Jerusalem (ARIJ). 2012.
The village's name is derived from the Turkish word '' chiflik'', the term for "land tenure" in the late
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...
which was applied in this as in many other Ottoman locations. It received its name due to the agricultural nature of the village. During the mandate period, there was a
Tegart fort
A Tegart fort is a type of militarized police fort constructed throughout Palestine during the British Mandatory period, initiated as a measure against the 1936–1939 Arab Revolt.
Etymology
The forts are named after their designer, British po ...
known as the Jiftlik Police Post just west of the present village.
In the wake of the
1948 Arab–Israeli War
The 1948 (or First) Arab–Israeli War was the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. It formally began following the end of the British Mandate for Palestine at midnight on 14 May 1948; the Israeli Declaration of Independence had ...
, and after the
1949 Armistice Agreements
The 1949 Armistice Agreements were signed between Israel and Egypt,Jordanian rule.
Since the
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab states (primarily Egypt, Syria, and Jordan) from 5 to 10 ...
in 1967, Al-Jiftlik has been under
Israeli occupation
Israeli-occupied territories are the lands that were captured and occupied by Israel during the Six-Day War of 1967. While the term is currently applied to the Palestinian territories and the Golan Heights, it has also been used to refer t ...
. In the aftermath of the war over 800 homes in al-Jiftlik were razed by the
Israeli army
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branch ...
and its 6,000 inhabitants were ordered to leave. Most of al-Jiftlik's inhabitants, however, returned to the village.
After the 1995 Accords between the Israel and the
Palestine Liberation Organization
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ar, منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية, ') is a Palestinian nationalist political and militant organization founded in 1964 with the initial purpose of establishing Arab unity and sta ...
(PLO), the village was designated as part of Area C. This makes it subject to full
Israeli
Israeli may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the State of Israel
* Israelis, citizens or permanent residents of the State of Israel
* Modern Hebrew, a language
* ''Israeli'' (newspaper), published from 2006 to 2008
* Guni Israeli (b ...
military and civil administration. This has allowed the Israelis to commit what
Robert Fisk
Robert Fisk (12 July 194630 October 2020) was a writer and journalist who held British and Irish citizenship. He was critical of United States foreign policy in the Middle East, and the Israeli government's treatment of Palestinians. His stan ...
in 2010 called "ethnic cleansing via bureaucracy". According to the head of the village council in Jiftlik, Palestinian requests for building were denied or delayed for years, and anything built without permission was "ruthlessly" torn down by the Israelis.
In 2005 a
village council
A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural council ...
was established to administer local affairs. Its nine members are appointed by the Palestinian National Authority. The council maintains a permanent headquarters and owns a waste collection vehicle. Among its responsibilities are building water and electricity networks in al-Jiftlik and providing an ambulance for the village.
Land confiscations by Israel
According to ARIJ, Israel has confiscated land from Al-Jiftlik in order to construct several
Israeli settlement
Israeli settlements, or Israeli colonies, are civilian communities inhabited by Israeli citizens, overwhelmingly of Jewish ethnicity, built on lands occupied by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War. The international community considers Israeli se ...
s:
*2,209
dunam
A dunam ( Ottoman Turkish, Arabic: ; tr, dönüm; he, דונם), also known as a donum or dunum and as the old, Turkish, or Ottoman stremma, was the Ottoman unit of area equivalent to the Greek stremma or English acre, representing the amou ...
Ma'ale Efrayim
Ma'ale Efrayim ( he, מַעֲלֵה אֶפְרַיִם, lit. ''Ascent of Ephraim'') is an Israeli settlement in the West Bank, organized as a secular settlement and a local council, located along the eastern slopes of the Samarian mountains in th ...
,
*1,294 dunams were taken for
Yafit
Yafit ( he, יַפִית, , Beautiful) is an Israeli settlement organized as a moshav shitufi in the West Bank. Located in the Jordan Valley, it falls under the jurisdiction of Bik'at HaYarden Regional Council. In it had a population of .
The ...
,
*645 dunams were taken for
Argaman
Argaman ( he, אַרְגָּמָן, , Crimson) is an Israeli settlement organized as a moshav in the West Bank. Located in the Jordan Valley, eight kilometres north of the Damia Bridge with an area of 4,500 dunams, it falls under the jurisdiction ...
,
*514 dunams were taken for Gitit,
*438 dunams were taken for Mekhora,
*176 dunams were taken for Petza'el.
Demographics
In the 2007 census al-Jiftlik had a population of 3,546 with exactly 50% being males and the other 50% females. The total number of households was 578 who lived in 692 housing units. The principal clans in al-Jiftlik are the 'Arab al-Masa'id, 'Arab al-Jahalin, 'Arab al-Ayed, al-Ajajrah, Abu Sureis, Abu Dalakh, Abu Dheila, al-Annuz, al-Rutimat and al-Nafei'at. According to the Applied Research Institute-Jerusalem (ARIJ), about 100 families have left al-Jiftlik since the start of the
Second Intifada
The Second Intifada ( ar, الانتفاضة الثانية, ; he, האינתיפאדה השנייה, ), also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada ( ar, انتفاضة الأقصى, label=none, '), was a major Palestinian uprising against Israel ...
in 2000.
Economy and education
Like several other villages in the Jordan Valley area, al-Jiftlik is subject to Israeli restrictions on construction and movement, and most often requests for building permits are denied. The village lacks electricity and water infrastructure.Aid agencies tread gingerly in Area C . ''
Ma'an News Agency
Ma'an News Agency (MNA; ar, وكالة معا الإخبارية) is a large wire service created in 2005 in the Palestinian territories. It is part of the Ma'an Network, a non-governmental organization media network created in 2002 in the Palest ...
''. 2013-1-13. It has primary school managed by the
UNRWA
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) is a UN agency that supports the relief and human development of Palestinian refugees. UNRWA's mandate encompasses Palestinians displaced by the 1948 P ...
with 950 students.
Id'eis
Id'eis is a Palestinian community several kilometres south of Al-Jiftlik, close to the Masua Israeli settlement. In May 2014, there were 23 families in two neighboring compounds made up of 13 families consisting of 75 people in 15 residential structures living in the north-west compound and 10 families consisting of 53 people living in 14 tents in the southern compound. Each compound also has many livestock structures for their flocks of several thousand sheep and goats. The community makes its living from shepherding and settled in the present location in 1982 having left the Hebron area and migrated across the Jordan Valley as they searched for pastureland. On 21 May 2014, the southern compound was demolished by five Israeli Civil Administration bulldozers supported by IDF soldiers and Border Police on the basis that the families did not have building permits.