Hallamish
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Halamish (), also known as Neveh Tzuf (), is an
Israeli settlement Israeli settlements, also called Israeli colonies, are the civilian communities built by Israel throughout the Israeli-occupied territories. They are populated by Israeli citizens, almost exclusively of Israeli Jews, Jewish identity or ethni ...
in the
West Bank The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
, located in the southwestern Samarian hills to the north of
Ramallah Ramallah ( , ; ) is a Palestinians, Palestinian city in the central West Bank, that serves as the administrative capital of the State of Palestine. It is situated on the Judaean Mountains, north of Jerusalem, at an average elevation of abov ...
, 10.7 kilometers east of the Green line. The
Orthodox Jewish Orthodox Judaism is a collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as literally revealed by God on Mount Sinai and faithfully tra ...
community was established in 1977. It is organised as a
community settlement A community settlement (, ''Yishuv Kehilati'') is a type of town or village in Israel and in the West Bank. In an ordinary town, anyone may buy property, but in a community settlement, the village's residents are organized in a cooperative an ...
and falls under the jurisdiction of
Mateh Binyamin Regional Council Mateh Binyamin Regional Council (, ''Mo'atza Azorit Mateh Binyamin,'' Lit. Council for the Region of the Tribe of Benjamin) is a Regional Councils in Israel, regional council Local government in Israel, governing 47 Israeli settlements and Israe ...
. In it had a population of . On a hill within the settlement is Hovlata, an archeological site dating to the Hasmonean period. The settlement of Neveh Tzuf is home to the religious pre-army Mechina Elisha. The international community considers Israeli settlements illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.


History

On 16 October 1977, two groups of settlers, one religious, calling itself “Neveh Tzuf” and one secular, called “Neveh Tzelah” with a total of 40 families moved into the abandoned former British
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, the Irish ...
building near the Palestinian village
Nabi Salih Nabi Salih ( ; alternatively spelled Nabi Saleh) is a small Palestinian village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate in the central West Bank, located 20 kilometers northwest of Ramallah. It had a population of 522 in 2017. In 2010-2016 wee ...
. The original name of the settlement, Neveh Tzuf, was rejected by the
Government Naming Committee Government Naming Committee (, sometimes referred as National Naming Committee or Government Names Committee) is a public committee appointed by the Government of Israel, which deals with the designation of names for communities and other points ...
, arguing that it might be misleading as the biblical location Eretz Tzuf was elsewhere. The naming committee gave the new settlement the official name 'Halamish' instead, derived from a biblical verse: He (God) "nourished him with oil from the crag of flint." (Deuteronomy 32:13) Since this name was rejected by some settlers, both names are used for the settlement. The Israeli Army issued military order 28/78 in 1978 to seize privately owned Palestinian land from the villages of
Deir Nidham Deir Nidham () is a Palestinian village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate in the central West Bank. It is located approximately northwest of the city of Ramallah and its elevation is . According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statis ...
,
Nabi Salih Nabi Salih ( ; alternatively spelled Nabi Saleh) is a small Palestinian village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate in the central West Bank, located 20 kilometers northwest of Ramallah. It had a population of 522 in 2017. In 2010-2016 wee ...
, and
Umm Safa Umm Safa/Kafr Ishwa () or Um Al-Safa is a Palestinians, Palestinian village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate. Location Umm Safa is located north of Ramallah. It is bordered by 'Ajjul and 'Atara to the east, Deir as Sudan and Ajjul t ...
and turned over 686
dunam A dunam ( Ottoman Turkish, Arabic: ; ; ; ), also known as a donum or dunum and as the old, Turkish, or Ottoman stremma, was the Ottoman unit of area analogous in role (but not equal) to the Greek stremma or English acre, representing the amo ...
s to the newly established settlement. According to ARIJ, Israel confiscated land from several surrounding Palestinian villages in order to construct Halamish; 604 dunams from Deir Nidham, 10 dunams from the Beitillu part of
Al-Ittihad Al-Ittihad may refer to: Sports Football Men Teams * Al-Ittihad Club (Jeddah), Jeddah, Saudi Arabia * Al Ittihad SCSC (Tripoli), Tripoli, Libya * Al Ittihad Gheryan, Gharyan, Libya * Al Ittihad Misurata SC, Misurata, Libya * Al Ittihad SC ...
.
Peace Now Peace Now ( ''Shalom Achshav'', ) is an Israeli liberal advocacy organization with the aim of promoting a two-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. Early activism In an official document from 1982 Peace Now advocated for an und ...
reported, based on data from the Israeli Civil Administration, that 34.35% of the land Halamish is built on is privately owned Palestinian property, with 0% being Jewish owned. On 21 July 2017, three Israelis were killed and one severely wounded in a stabbing attack in Halamish. The residents of Halamish set up an
Israeli outpost In Israeli law, an outpost (, ''Ma'ahaz'' lit. "a handhold") is an unauthorized or illegal Israeli settlement within the West Bank, constructed without the required authorization from the Israeli government in contravention of Israeli statutes ...
near the settlement as a response to the attack.


Legal status

Upon the first work preparing the land, residents of the nearby Palestinian village
Deir Nidham Deir Nidham () is a Palestinian village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate in the central West Bank. It is located approximately northwest of the city of Ramallah and its elevation is . According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statis ...
went to the
Supreme Court of Israel The Supreme Court of Israel (, Hebrew acronym Bagatz; ) is the Supreme court, highest court in Israel. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all other courts, and in some cases original jurisdiction. The Supreme Court consists of 15 jud ...
and claimed private ownership of land to be used for settlement. Based on aerial photos from the turn of the 20th century, showing the disputed land to be barren, and
Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
land law specifying that land not worked for over ten years becomes
state land In all modern states, a portion of land is held by central or local governments. This is called public land, state land, or Crown land (Commonwealth realms). The system of tenure of public land, and the terminology used, varies between countries. ...
, the land was declared state land and freed for settlement constructions. The residents of the nearby Palestinian village of
Nabi Salih Nabi Salih ( ; alternatively spelled Nabi Saleh) is a small Palestinian village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate in the central West Bank, located 20 kilometers northwest of Ramallah. It had a population of 522 in 2017. In 2010-2016 wee ...
regularly protest against what they allege is the takeover of a spring by the settlers of Halamish. However, the spring was declared an "antiquities site" by the Civil Administration, located on private land belonging to inhabitants of Nabi Salih. Residents of Nabi Salih also assert that they are being prevented from working the fields around the spring. The protests have led to violent clashes, with Palestinian youths throwing stones and Israeli forces firing on protesters with
tear gas Tear gas, also known as a lachrymatory agent or lachrymator (), sometimes colloquially known as "mace" after the Mace (spray), early commercial self-defense spray, is a chemical weapon that stimulates the nerves of the lacrimal gland in the ey ...
,
rubber bullets "Rubber Bullets" is a song by the English band 10cc from their self-titled debut album. It was written by Lol Creme, Kevin Godley and Graham Gouldman. Recording and impact The song features a double-speed guitar solo, guitarist Eric Stewart ...
, and
water cannons A water cannon is a device that shoots a high-velocity stream of water. Typically, a water cannon can deliver a large volume of water, often over dozens of meters. They are used in firefighting, large vehicle washing, riot control, and mining. ...
. Since the end of 2009, 64 people (13% of the village's population) has been arrested by Israeli forces.
Bassem al-Tamimi Bassem Tamimi (also Bassem al-Tamimi; ; born c. 1967) is a Palestinian grassroots activist and an organizer of protests against Israeli settlement construction in the West Bank. He was convicted by an Israeli military court in 2012 (after bein ...
, one of the leaders of the protests, who was declared a
human rights defender A human rights defender or human rights activist is a person who, individually or with others, acts to promote or protect human rights. They can be journalists, environmentalists, whistleblowers, trade unionists, lawyers, teachers, housing campai ...
by the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...
and a
prisoner of conscience A prisoner of conscience (POC) is anyone imprisoned because of their race, sexual orientation, religion, or political views. The term also refers to those who have been imprisoned or persecuted for the nonviolent expression of their conscienti ...
by
Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...
, has been arrested twelve times to date. On 24 March 2011 he was arrested and charged with incitement, holding a march without a permit, sending youths to throw stones, and perverting the course of justice. After an 11-month military trial, he was cleared of the central charge of incitement and of perverting the course of justice by an Israeli military court, but found guilty of taking part in illegal demonstrations and of soliciting protesters to throw stones largely based on the testimony of two Palestinian youths aged 14 and 15. After being released on bail on 24 April 2012, he was given a 13-month sentence in May 2012, corresponding to the time he had served in prison while awaiting trial. The international community considers Israeli settlements in the
Israeli-occupied West Bank The West Bank, including East Jerusalem, has been under military occupation by Israel since 7 June 1967, when Israeli forces captured the territory, then ruled by Jordan, during the Six-Day War. The status of the West Bank as a militarily oc ...
to be illegal under international law, violating the Fourth Geneva Convention's prohibition on the transfer of civilians into or out of occupied territory. Israel however disputes that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies to the West Bank and disputes their illegality.


References


External links


Neve Tzuf
Jewish Agency The Jewish Agency for Israel (), formerly known as the Jewish Agency for Palestine, is the largest Jewish non-profit organization in the world. It was established in 1929 as the operative branch of the World Zionist Organization (WZO). As an ...

Neve Tzuf
Nefesh B'Nefesh Nefesh B'Nefesh (), or Jewish Souls United, is a nonprofit organization that promotes, encourages, and facilitates aliyah (Jewish immigration to Israel) from the United States and Canada. The organization aims to remove or minimize the financia ...
{{Authority control Religious Israeli settlements Populated places established in 1977 Mateh Binyamin Regional Council 1977 establishments in the Israeli Military Governorate Community settlements