HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Itamar () 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 ...
located 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 ...
's Samarian mountains, five kilometers southeast of the
Palestinian Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...
city of
Nablus Nablus ( ; , ) is a State of Palestine, Palestinian city in the West Bank, located approximately north of Jerusalem, with a population of 156,906. Located between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, it is the capital of the Nablus Governorate and a ...
. The settlement was built on land confiscated from the Palestinian villages of
Awarta Awarta () is a Palestinian town located southeast of Nablus, in the northern West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of 7,054 inhabitants in 2017. Awarta's built-up area consists of and it ...
,
Beit Furik Beit Furik () is a town located nine kilometers southeast of Nablus, in the Nablus Governorate of the northern West Bank, Palestinian territories, Palestine. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of ...
,
Yanun Yanun () is a Palestinian village in the Nablus Governorate of the State of Palestine, in the northern West Bank, located southeast of Nablus, and 3 miles north of Aqraba. It lies within Area C, under total Israeli control, of the West Bank. It ...
,
Aqraba Akraba (variants: Aqrab, Aqraba, Agrab or Aqrabiyah) may refer to: Egypt * Al-Aqrab Prison, a prison in Cairo, Egypt Iraq * Tell Agrab, an ancient settlement in Iraq in Diyala Governorate Palestine * Aqraba, Nablus, a Palestinian town in the Na ...
and
Rujeib Rujeib () is a Palestinian town in the Nablus Governorate of the State of Palestine, in the northern West Bank, located 3 kilometers southeast of Nablus. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), the town had a population of ...
. The predominantly
Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pag ...
and
Religious Zionist Religious Zionism () is a religious denomination that views Zionism as a fundamental component of Orthodox Judaism. Its adherents are also referred to as ''Dati Leumi'' (), and in Israel, they are most commonly known by the plural form of the fi ...
Jewish community falls in partChaim Levinson
'Israeli 'hilltop youth' accuse their former hero of stealing settlers' land,’
at
Haaretz ''Haaretz'' (; originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , , ) is an List of newspapers in Israel, Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel. The paper is published in Hebrew lan ...
, 31 January 2013.
within the municipal jurisdiction of the
Shomron Regional Council The Shomron Regional Council (, ''Mo'atza Azorit Shomron'', English ''Samaria Regional Council'') is an Israeli regional council in the northern portion of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Thirty-five Israeli settlements fall under its jurisdict ...
. Under the terms of the
Oslo Accords The Oslo Accords are a pair of interim agreements between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO): the Oslo I Accord, signed in Washington, D.C., in 1993; and the Oslo II Accord, signed in Taba, Egypt, in 1995. They marked the st ...
of 1993 between Israel and the
Palestine Liberation Organization The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ) is a Palestinian nationalism, Palestinian nationalist coalition that is internationally recognized as the official representative of the Palestinians, Palestinian people in both the occupied Pale ...
, Itamar was designated Area "C", under provisional Israeli civil and security control, before a transition period after which Area "C" was to be handed back to the Palestinians. In , it had a population of . The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this. The settlement has several outposts and covers a total area of approximately 7,000
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 of land. Itamar's residents have been the target of several lethal attacks by Palestinian militants, most notably the 2011 massacre of the Fogel family by residents of the nearby village of Awarta. HRW reports an extensive number of violent acts by settlers from Itamar and its outposts against local Palestinians.


History

According to ARIJ, Itamar was founded on land which
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
had confiscated from several nearby
Palestinian Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...
villages: * 2,450 dunums were taken from
Awarta Awarta () is a Palestinian town located southeast of Nablus, in the northern West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of 7,054 inhabitants in 2017. Awarta's built-up area consists of and it ...
,‘Awarta Village Profile
ARIJ, p. 15
* 441 dunums were taken from
Beit Furik Beit Furik () is a town located nine kilometers southeast of Nablus, in the Nablus Governorate of the northern West Bank, Palestinian territories, Palestine. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of ...
for Itamar and Michola,Beit Furik Town Profile
ARIJ, p. 16
* 1,085 dunums were taken from
Yanun Yanun () is a Palestinian village in the Nablus Governorate of the State of Palestine, in the northern West Bank, located southeast of Nablus, and 3 miles north of Aqraba. It lies within Area C, under total Israeli control, of the West Bank. It ...
/
Aqraba Akraba (variants: Aqrab, Aqraba, Agrab or Aqrabiyah) may refer to: Egypt * Al-Aqrab Prison, a prison in Cairo, Egypt Iraq * Tell Agrab, an ancient settlement in Iraq in Diyala Governorate Palestine * Aqraba, Nablus, a Palestinian town in the Na ...
for Itamar and
Gitit Gitit may refer to: * Gitit, Bik'at HaYarden, Israeli settlement on the West Bank * Gittith, a Biblical musical designation {{disambiguation ...
. *169 dunes were taken from
Rujeib Rujeib () is a Palestinian town in the Nablus Governorate of the State of Palestine, in the northern West Bank, located 3 kilometers southeast of Nablus. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), the town had a population of ...
.Rujeib village profile
ARIJ, p. 14
The settlement was established in 1984 by several families from the
Machon Meir Machon Meir () is a religious Zionist outreach organization and yeshiva located near Givat Shaul in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Kiryat Moshe. It is one of the larger Jewish outreach () organizations in Israel. History & Ideology Machon Meir wa ...
Yeshiva A yeshiva (; ; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are studied in parallel. The stu ...
in
Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...
with the assistance of
Gush Emunim Gush Emunim (, lit. "Bloc of the Faithful") was an Israeli ultranationalist religious Zionist Orthodox Jewish right-wing fundamentalist activist movement committed to establishing Jewish settlements in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and the Golan ...
's settlement organization Amana. Originally named ''Tel Chaim'', commemorating Chaim Landau, it was later named for
Ithamar In the Bible, Ithamar () was the fourth (and the youngest) son of Aaron the High Priest."Ithamar", '' Encyclopaedia Biblica'' Following the construction of the Tabernacle, he was responsible for recording an inventory to ensure that the construc ...
, the youngest son of Biblical figure
Aaron According to the Old Testament of the Bible, Aaron ( or ) was an Israelite prophet, a high priest, and the elder brother of Moses. Information about Aaron comes exclusively from religious texts, such as the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament ...
(Exodus 28:1). Tradition places the burial place of Ithamar in the nearby Palestinian village
Awarta Awarta () is a Palestinian town located southeast of Nablus, in the northern West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of 7,054 inhabitants in 2017. Awarta's built-up area consists of and it ...
. The major of the city argues that the deed title for taking over the land is based on biblical writ.
Isabel Kershner Isabel Kershner is a British-born Israeli journalist and author, who began reporting from Jerusalem for ''The New York Times'' in 2007. Kershner had previously worked as senior Middle East editor for '' The Jerusalem Report'' magazine. She has a ...

‘Neighbors’ Blood Binds Settlers to West Bank,’
at
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
, 15 March 2011:'"We have a legitimate right to the Land of Israel," said Moshe Goldsmith, 47, the mayor of Itamar. "The Bible is our deed".'
According to Palestinians at
Yanun Yanun () is a Palestinian village in the Nablus Governorate of the State of Palestine, in the northern West Bank, located southeast of Nablus, and 3 miles north of Aqraba. It lies within Area C, under total Israeli control, of the West Bank. It ...
,Haaretz staff
'Settlers attack Palestinian olive-pickers in West Bank,'
at
Haaretz ''Haaretz'' (; originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , , ) is an List of newspapers in Israel, Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel. The paper is published in Hebrew lan ...
19 October 2002
before the
al-Aqsa Intifada The Second Intifada (; ), also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada, was a major uprising by Palestinians against Israel and its occupation from 2000. Starting as a civilian uprising in Jerusalem and Israel proper, Israeli security responded wit ...
, relations between local villagers and Itamar, the nearest legal settlement, had been on a good footing. After the killing of 13 Israeli Arabs in Jerusalem, matters rapidly deteriorated, and over 3 years, Palestinian militants killed some 11 Itamar settlers. In Itamar, blame for these killings was laid at the door of local Palestinian villagers, who according to Californian emigrant Alon Zimmerman, were believed to provide militants with local support.Vikram Sur
'No olive branch for Yanun?,'
at
The Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It was founded as a weekly publication in 1878 by the Triplicane Six, becoming a daily in 1889. It is one of the India ...
, 12 October 2003.
The whole village of Yanun, though never linked to any violence or attack, itself was so harassed by local Itamar hilltop settlers that its entire population was put to flight, and sought refuge in Awarta, and became, according to Joel Greenberg 'the first case in memory in which harassment by Jewish settlers has emptied an entire Palestinian community'. At the time of the uprising Itamar had a reputation among Israelis one of the hard core settlements. One visitor at the time remarked that many of its recent residents were immigrants from the former Soviet empire, and from Argentina, who spoke poor Hebrew and dwelt in trailers and appeared to have little awareness of where they were or why anyone should object to their presence there. The Itamar settlement is the object of land disputes. The borders of the settlement stretch out south-east to take in an area 14 times the actual area of construction, in a way that completely blocks any possibility for the development of the Palestinian village, with a population of 9,000, of Beit Furiq. A
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 ...
analysis in 2006 provided the following breakdown of the situation at Itamar. The settlement area extended over of which or 43.80% was private land. The land owned by Jews amounted to or 0.05%. A follow-up report specified that in the data provided by the
Israeli Civil Administration The Civil Administration (, '; ) is the Israeli governing body that operates in the West Bank. It was established by the government of Israel in 1981, in order to carry out practical bureaucratic functions within the Israeli Military Governorate ...
"there is no mention of whether the private land is owned by Palestinians or by Jews privately owned... Nevertheless, it is highly probable that most of the land that is marked here as private land (if not all of it) is privately owned Palestinian land". The settlement of Itamar, not including the outposts, grew from a population of less than 300 in 1995 to 785 in 2008, and reached a population of over 1,000 in 2009, predominantly Orthodox – most of them newly religious – Jewish settlers. Locals state that low property prices account for part of the attraction, with a three-bedroom Itamar house priced around £75,000, compared to roughly £375,000 in Jerusalem. According to resident Leah Zak, following the Fogel family massacre, much of the community became invested in growing and developing Itamar; this included naming several social projects after members of the Fogel family. In the year following the attack, it was reported that 21 families had moved to Itamar.


Geography

Itamar is situated east of the
Israeli West Bank barrier The West Bank barrier, West Bank wall or the West Bank separation barrier, is a separation barrier built by Israel along the Green Line (Israel), Green Line and inside parts of the West Bank. Israel describes the wall as a necessary securi ...
, 28 kilometers from the Green line in the region known as "Gav Hahar" (Hump of the Mountain). Its municipal boundaries extend in a south-east diagonal over an area of some 7,000 dunam including several outposts, the furthest of which is about eight kilometers from Itamar. Itamar and its outposts partly encircled the small Palestinian village of
Yanun Yanun () is a Palestinian village in the Nablus Governorate of the State of Palestine, in the northern West Bank, located southeast of Nablus, and 3 miles north of Aqraba. It lies within Area C, under total Israeli control, of the West Bank. It ...
, and block the development of the Palestinian town of
Beit Furik Beit Furik () is a town located nine kilometers southeast of Nablus, in the Nablus Governorate of the northern West Bank, Palestinian territories, Palestine. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of ...
, according to a report by Israeli human rights organization B'tselem. In the 1990s, Itamar seized the surrounding hills, establishing the outposts The Point in 1996, Hill 836, Hill 851 and
Giv'ot Olam Giv'ot Olam () is an Israeli outpost in the northern West Bank. Located 4.5 kilometres south-east of Itamar (settlement), Itamar, it falls under the jurisdiction of Shomron Regional Council. History Giv'ot Olam was established in late 1998 by Av ...
in 1998, Hill 777 and Hill 782 in 1999, and in 2002 Itamar North. Five of these outposts were approved by former prime minister
Ehud Barak Ehud Barak ( ; born Ehud Brog; 12 February 1942) is an Israeli former general and politician who served as the Prime Minister of Israel, prime minister from 1999 to 2001. He was leader of the Israeli Labor Party, Labor Party between 1997 and 20 ...
in 2000. At the time, a master plan gave the settlement a total area of some 6,000 dunams. In addition to Itamar, three other settlements are located in the Harey Kadem mountains:
Yitzhar Yitzhar () is an Israeli settlement located in the West Bank, south of the city of Nablus, just off Route 60, north of the Tapuach Junction. The predominantly Orthodox Jewish community falls under the jurisdiction of Shomron Regional Council. ...
,
Har Bracha Har Brakha, more commonly spelled Har Bracha (, ''lit.'' Mount fBlessing) is an Israeli settlement located on the southern ridge of Mount Gerizim at an elevation of above sea level, in the West Bank's Samarian Mountains, near the Palestinian ...
, and
Elon Moreh Elon Moreh () is an Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox Jewish Israeli settlement in the West Bank. Located northeast of the State of Palestine, Palestinian city of Nablus, on the slopes of the Mount Kabir ridge, it falls under the jurisdiction of Shomr ...
. Leah Goldsmith, the wife of Rabbi Moshe Goldsmith, wrote about the town:
It is hill country, tremendously big, picturesque and mysterious, varied with long and wide valleys who resemble a mosaic coat of many colors ranging from pea to deep jade greens and chestnut browns in the winter and spring months. In the summertime the colors are dry, like the colors of Rebecca's jug, in which she served Eliezer and the camels in Babylon.

There are springs and wells in the hills. The bounty stemming from the blessing given to Joseph…."The blessings of the father are potent above the blessings of my progenitors to the utmost bounds of the everlasting hills"(Vayechi 49). The tribunal portions of Ephraim and Menashe, the sons of Joseph run across these highlands. In every direction that one looks, the views are emanated with authentic biblical greatness and Jewish nobility. This is the chief feature of the landscape, of your life in it, and you are struck by the feeling of having lived here in the past.


Economy

Itamar was among the settlements which were designated a "national priority zone" in December 2009, and is entitled to an average of NIS 1,000 per person per year in subsidies in addition to the ordinary settlement subsidies. There are several businesses in the settlement, and many of the residents grow organic crops and raise sheep and goats;Itamar: Religious West Bank settlers
''
BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...
'', 21 June 2002
larger farms produce a range of further products, such as cheese and olive oil. According to local residents, 80% of Israel's domestically sold organic eggs are produced at Itamar's chicken farm. Other businesses include a yogurt and cheese factory; a small perfume factory; a stained glass workshop; and a hothouses for the vegetables. Itamar also has programs for the learning disabled and the physically disabled.


Education

Itamar's educational system includes
kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cen ...
, elementary school for boys and girls, and several institutions of
secondary education Secondary education is the education level following primary education and preceding tertiary education. Level 2 or ''lower secondary education'' (less commonly ''junior secondary education'') is considered the second and final phase of basic e ...
and
higher learning Tertiary education (higher education, or post-secondary education) is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank defines tertiary education as including universities, colleges, and vocational schools ...
which attract Israeli students other regional settlements such as
Yitzhar Yitzhar () is an Israeli settlement located in the West Bank, south of the city of Nablus, just off Route 60, north of the Tapuach Junction. The predominantly Orthodox Jewish community falls under the jurisdiction of Shomron Regional Council. ...
. Among them are a
Talmud Torah Talmud Torah (, lit. 'Study of the Torah') schools were created in the Jewish world, both Ashkenazic and Sephardic, as a form of religious school for boys of modest backgrounds, where they were given an elementary education in Hebrew language, H ...
for boys, the Be'er Miriam Talmud Torah for girls, the Hitzim
yeshiva A yeshiva (; ; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are studied in parallel. The stu ...
high school for boys, co-founded by Rabbi Moshe Goldsmith and the Itamar Hesder yeshiva founded by Rabbi Brigadier General Avichai Ronsky, IDF Chief Rabbi from 2006 till 2010. In March 2012, three children and a teacher were killed in the shooting attack at Otzar Hatorah school in Toulouse, France. Three months later, Tamar Fogel, a survivor of the Fogel family massacre, and a group Bnei Akiva youth visited France "to help strengthen the local Jewish communities". Yigal Klein, director of counselors for Bnei Akiva, said, "Many members of the Jewish delegation in France thought they would strengthen the youth of Itamar during their visit, but the opposite was true. The Itamar delegation demonstrated faith and spiritual strength that surprised many of the adults and youth whom they met."


Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Itamar and its residents have been targeted several times by Palestinians terrorists in the past, three such incidents taking place between May and July 2002, a fourth in August 2004 and another in 2011, which have caused more than a dozen deaths while the
UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is a United Nations (UN) body established in December 1991 by the General Assembly to strengthen the international response to complex emergencies and natural disasters ...
(UNOCHA), human rights organisations and media report an extensive number of violent acts by Itamar settlers against local Palestinians. According to B'Tselem, "settlers from these settlements have exerted violence against local Palestinians; the Israeli authorities have been delinquent in enforcing the law on the offenders". One of Itamar's founders, Brigadier General Avichai Ronski, in the wake of the Fogel massacre, went on record advocating
collective punishment Collective punishment is a punishment or sanction imposed on a group or whole community for acts allegedly perpetrated by a member or some members of that group or area, which could be an ethnic or political group, or just the family, friends a ...
for Palestinian villages when any of their residents are found to be responsible for a murder of a Jew:
"A village like this, like Awarta, from which the murderers of the Fogel family and of the Shebo family emerged, must suffer as a village. A situation must be created whereby the inhabitants prevent anyone in this village from harming Jews. Yes, it is collective punishment. They must not be allowed to sleep at night, they must not be allowed to go to work, they must not be allowed to drive their cars. There are many ways."


Palestinian victims

Yaacov Hayman, a Californian immigrant to Itamar, told an interviewer at the outbreak of
Al-Aqsa Intifada The Second Intifada (; ), also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada, was a major uprising by Palestinians against Israel and its occupation from 2000. Starting as a civilian uprising in Jerusalem and Israel proper, Israeli security responded wit ...
in 2000: "There comes a time when if you want to have peace you have to make war." In 2002, Palestinian villagers near Itamar claimed they were not involved in attacks, and asked why they should be punished for them. Yaacov Hayman also denied settlers killed anyone, but stated that local Palestinians must not be allowed to work near their settlement: "If they can't live like human beings, they won't pick olives here. They'll starve here. I don't care. They won't be here to butcher us." The IDF prohibit Palestinian farmers from working at their fields close to the settlement, but are required to protect them during the
olive harvest The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'' ("European olive"), is a species of subtropical evergreen tree in the family Oleaceae. Originating in Asia Minor, it is abundant throughout the Mediterranean Basin, with wild subspecies in Africa ...
.
However, residents of Itamar and its outposts have been reported harassing local Palestinians, damaging their property and obstructing their access to land, particularly during the olive harvest. They have reportedly stolen olives, prevented Palestinian farmers from reaching their land, even when accompanied by international activists, shot at farmers picking their olives, or grazing their animals. It is alleged that they have set fire to hundreds of olive trees and thousands of dunam of cultivated land belonging to local Palestinians. The small village of Yanun, which is flanked by the settlement's outposts, particularly suffered from constant harassment, which caused the villagers to abandon their village in October 2002 and move to the larger nearby village of
Aqraba Akraba (variants: Aqrab, Aqraba, Agrab or Aqrabiyah) may refer to: Egypt * Al-Aqrab Prison, a prison in Cairo, Egypt Iraq * Tell Agrab, an ancient settlement in Iraq in Diyala Governorate Palestine * Aqraba, Nablus, a Palestinian town in the Na ...
. In some cases, the violence has resulted in death. *26 October 1998 – Muhammad Suliman Az-Zalmut, a 70-year-old Palestinian farmer, was bludgeoned to death with a 20-pound rock in an unprovoked attack by Gur Hamel, a 26-year-old Itamar settler and yeshiva student who was under an expulsion order from the IDF after being involved in several violent incidents with Palestinian farmers. He encountered Zalout while walking to Givot Olam. *7 October 2001 An Itamar settler went to the Palestinian orchards of Aqraba and opened fire at farmers, killing one Palestinian and moderately wounding two others. *17 October 2001 – Farid Musa Issa Nasasrah from
Beit Furik Beit Furik () is a town located nine kilometers southeast of Nablus, in the Nablus Governorate of the northern West Bank, Palestinian territories, Palestine. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of ...
was murdered, and three other Palestinians villagers wounded, near Itamar by settlers. Two Itamar residents, Yaron Degani and Gad Tena, subsequently arrested on suspicion for the shooting, were released for insufficient evidence after five days. *6 October 2002 – during the olive harvesting, Hani Bani Maniya, together with his cousin Fouad, from Aqraba was shot by settlers after running to the assistance of Fadi Beni Jabar who had been shot in the hand. Maniya died of gunshot wounds shortly afterwards, outside of Nablus where the ambulance had been stopped at an Israeli roadblock. IDF officers said off the record that a group of settlers had been intentionally attacking Palestinians during their olive harvest. Palestinian sources said 10 armed settlers from nearby Gidonim and Itamar were involved. *27 September 2004 – Itamar resident Yehoshua Elitzur shot and killed Sael A-Shatiya (Sa'il Mustafa Ahmad Jabarah), a Palestinian taxi driver from
Salem Salem may refer to: Places Canada * Salem, Ontario, various places Germany * Salem, Baden-Württemberg, a municipality in the Bodensee district ** Salem Abbey (Reichskloster Salem), a monastery * Salem, Schleswig-Holstein Israel * Salem (B ...
, reportedly when the latter slowed his car to ask whether Elitzur needed assistance near the Itamar junction. Police initially concluded the shooting was in self-defence. Elitzur was convicted of
manslaughter Manslaughter is a common law legal term for homicide considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is sometimes said to have first been made by the ancient Athenian lawmaker Draco in the 7th ce ...
, was released to
house arrest House arrest (also called home confinement, or nowadays electronic monitoring) is a legal measure where a person is required to remain at their residence under supervision, typically as an alternative to imprisonment. The person is confined b ...
, did not show up in court for sentencing and disappeared. He was eventually arrested by
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL (abbreviated as ICPO–INTERPOL), commonly known as Interpol ( , ; stylized in allcaps), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime cont ...
in San Paolo on 18 July 2015, and after a long legal battle, extradited to Israel where in May 2018 he was sentenced to 15 years in prison, and ordered to pay compensation to his victim's family of 200,000 shekels ($55,500). The story has been told in a 2019 documentary, "Chasing Yehoshua", produced by Shay Fogelman. *20 March 2010 – two Awarta teenagers, the cousins Salah Qawariq, 18, and Muhammad Qawariq, 19, were shot dead, while on their way to their farmland, in unclear circumstances, a day after two others from nearby villages had been shot dead during a confrontation with the Israeli army. The IDF said it was responsible, while Palestinian sources claimed Itamar settlers had attacked the boys, or that their deaths had been caused by a settler militia from Itamar.Mel Frykberg
'Palestinian Village Under Siege Following Settler Killings,'
at
Inter Press Service Inter Press Service (IPS) is a global news agency headquartered in Rome, Italy. Its main focus is news and analysis about social, political, civil, and economic subjects as they relate to the Global South, civil society, and globalization. His ...
, 15 March 2011:'While the IDF officially took responsibility for the killings, rumours surfaced about the possibility of a settler militia from Itamar being responsible. After the deaths a settler website mentioned that the first person to "find the bodies" was an extremist settler from Itamar. However, when news of this began to circulate in the media the website hastily withdrew the claims. ‘
An IDF spokeswoman initially replied that the two had tried to stab a soldier on patrol. In a later version, the IDF took full responsibility, announcing that the deaths were unnecessary and could have been avoided. Autopsies indicated they had been shot at close range, with some of the bullet trajectories suggesting they had been killed while seated or kneeling.


Israeli victims

Residents of Itamar who were killed in attacks outside the settlement include Gilad Zar (41), Meir Lixenberg (38), Matan Zagron (22), and Eliyahu Asheri (18). Zar, the son of settlement leader
Moshe Zar Moshe Zar (; 27 January 1937 – 11 July 2025) was an Israeli settler and convicted terrorist. A Religious Zionism, religious Zionist, he was a member of the Jewish religious terrorism, terrorist organization "Jewish Underground", and was known ...
and one of Itamar's founders who worked as security officer of the
Shomron Regional Council The Shomron Regional Council (, ''Mo'atza Azorit Shomron'', English ''Samaria Regional Council'') is an Israeli regional council in the northern portion of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Thirty-five Israeli settlements fall under its jurisdict ...
, was shot dead in an ambush by Palestinian terrorists in May 2001 while driving in the West Bank between
Kedumim Kedumim (), is an Israeli settlement in the northern West Bank. Founded on Hanukkah 1975 by members of the Gush Emunim settlement movement, it later became a local council. In it had a population of . The consensus of the international commu ...
and
Yitzhar Yitzhar () is an Israeli settlement located in the West Bank, south of the city of Nablus, just off Route 60, north of the Tapuach Junction. The predominantly Orthodox Jewish community falls under the jurisdiction of Shomron Regional Council. ...
. Lixenberg was shot and killed in a roadside ambush between
Har Bracha Har Brakha, more commonly spelled Har Bracha (, ''lit.'' Mount fBlessing) is an Israeli settlement located on the southern ridge of Mount Gerizim at an elevation of above sea level, in the West Bank's Samarian Mountains, near the Palestinian ...
and Itamar while returning home from work on 27 August 2001.Victims of Palestinian Violence and Terrorism since September 2000
Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Zagron was killed by a suicide bomber on 27 October 2002 in Ariel along with two other Israelis. Asheri, a high school student, was kidnapped by Palestinian
Tanzim ''Tanzim'' ( ', "The Organization") is a militant faction of the Palestinian Fatah movement. Led by Marwan Barghouti, who is serving life sentences for murder in Israel, it gained prominence during the Second Intifada. Tanzim operates at t ...
militants in June 2006 while on his way from
Beitar Illit Beitar Illit (; officially Betar Illit; ) is a Haredi Jewish-Israeli settlement organized as a city council in the Gush Etzion settlement bloc, southwest of Jerusalem in the West Bank. Beitar Illit is one of Israel's largest and most rapidly ...
to Neveh Tzuf, northwest of Ramallah, and murdered while in captivity. His body was later found in an open field. Rabbi Binyamin Herling (64), a Holocaust survivor, was killed near Itamar on 19 October 2000 when Fatah and Palestinian security forces opened fire on a group of men, women, and children. Arieh Arnaldo Leon Agranionic (48) was shot and killed at close range on 8 May 2001 while defending Itamar. A number of infiltrations into Itamar have also resulted in deaths. In May 2002, a Palestinian shot and killed two students playing basketball outside of the Hitzim yeshiva high school. He then entered the yeshiva and shot three more teenagers, one of whom died from his wounds, before being shot by one of the teachers.

Less than a month later, two Palestinians broke into the home of the Shabo family and opened fire, killing Rachel Shabo (40) and three of her children, Neria (15), Zvika (12), and Avishai (5). Two other children, Asahel (10) and Avia (13), were shot and severely wounded. Yosef Twito (31), father of five, who served as commander of the neighborhood preparedness team, was also shot to death in the attack, as he approached the family's home to help.
Another eight Israelis were injured when soldiers stormed the house to rescue trapped civilians. Ambulances carrying the wounded were delayed by roadblocks and pelted with stones. The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine claimed responsibility for the attack. Twitos successor, Shlomo Miller (50), was killed in August 2004 by a Palestinian identified as a member of the preventive security forces of the
Palestinian Authority The Palestinian Authority (PA), officially known as the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), is the Fatah-controlled government body that exercises partial civil control over the Palestinian enclaves in the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, ...
. In July 2002, an armed Palestinian broke into the home of David (44) and Orna Mimran (40), stabbing both of them. He also stabbed the empty beds of their eight children, who were away visiting their grandparents. They fought back and survived the attack, and an army officer killed the attacker. David Mimran suffered sixteen stab wounds. In an attack in March 2011 five members of the Fogel family were stabbed to death in their sleep: Udi Fogel (36), Ruth Fogel (35), and their children Yoav (11), Elad (4), and Hadas (3 months). According to multiple sources, the infant was decapitated. The bodies were found by Udi and Ruth's twelve-year-old daughter, Tamar. Two young Palestinian men, Amjad Awad and Hakim Awad, from the village of Awarta were arrested in April and proudly confessed to the murder, reenacted it before the security officials, and expressed no remorse. They were both convicted of five counts of murder and sentenced to five consecutive life sentences. They were also convicted for weapons-related and other security offenses. The attack has been called a
massacre A massacre is an event of killing people who are not engaged in hostilities or are defenseless. It is generally used to describe a targeted killing of civilians Glossary of French words and expressions in English#En masse, en masse by an armed ...
by various reports. In February 2012, more than 1,000 members of the
Likud Likud (, ), officially known as Likud – National Liberal Movement (), is a major Right-wing politics, right-wing, political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin and Ariel Sharon in an alliance with several right-wing par ...
party visited Itamar and planted 1,500 trees in memory of the victims of the Fogel family massacre as part of annual
Tu Bishvat Tu BiShvat () is a Jewish holiday occurring on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Shevat. It is also called ''Rosh HaShanah La'Ilanot'' (), literally " New Year to the Trees". In contemporary Israel, the day is celebrated as an ecological awa ...
festivities throughout Israel. Palestinian newspapers spread the unsubstantiated claim that the massacres were carried out by a disgruntled Thai worker. Dozens of women and children from Itamar protested in October 2011 when Palestinians from
Awarta Awarta () is a Palestinian town located southeast of Nablus, in the northern West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of 7,054 inhabitants in 2017. Awarta's built-up area consists of and it ...
were allowed to harvest olives within their security zone, as they said they were not informed prior and relatives of the murderers of the Fogel family were among the harvesters. According to the Shomron Residents Committee, Palestinian harvesters allegedly taunted the surviving Fogel children, threw rocks at Itamar residents, yelling "We'll Fogel you" and other threats. Tamar Fogel joined the protestors. Gershon Mesika, head of the Shomron Regional Council, said that Hakim Awad had used the harvest a year prior to gather information in preparation for the attack, and Brigadier General (Res.) Rabbi Avichai Rontzki stated, "Six months after the murder, with the blood still boiling and the settlement still caring for its bleeding wounds, allowing any resident of Awarta where the murderers of the Fogel family and the Shabo family came from is outrageous lawlessness." According to the Itamar settlers, "In previous years, the yeshiva students had harvested the olives and transferred them to Awarta free of charge". Violence against Israeli shepherds has also been reported. In April 2012, a skirmish took place between several Itamar settlers and Palestinians on Hill 777, a nearby outpost. Both sides reported injuries and stated that the other had initiated a confrontation. According to the Israeli account, a group of Palestinians threw rocks at them and beat them with clubs. They reported that two were injured, including Matan Fogel, the younger brother of Udi Fogel. The Palestinians stated that they were attacked first and that three were injured. This was the second incident to occur in the same week, after Palestinians began farming in Harish, a restricted area.


2012 lawsuit

In March 2012, Attorney Doron Nir Tzvi, legal advisor for the Committee of Samaria Residents, filed a complaint against ''
Haaretz ''Haaretz'' (; originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , , ) is an List of newspapers in Israel, Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel. The paper is published in Hebrew lan ...
'' reporter Neri Livneh for describing the town as "especially aggressive" and claiming that "every two years a murderer comes out of there" in a television appearance. According to the suit, Livneh slandered two Itamar residents by calling them murderers. In November of the same year, the court ruled in Itamar's favor and ordered Livneh to pay 200,000 shekels (50,000 dollars) in addition to attorney and court costs. This ruling was reportedly reached after Livneh "failed to file a defense statement in time and had not requested an extension to do so".


2012–13 dispute among Itamar settlers

In late 2012,
Avri Ran Avraham "Avri" Ran (; born 1955) is an Israeli settler activist and businessman, with a record for repeated criminal offenses against Palestinians. He has been called the founding father and "undisputed symbol" of the Hilltop Youth movement. His ...
took over a hill, Mitzpeh Shloshet Hayamim, which fellow Itamar residents had planned to turn into a tourist site for its views, and then bulldozed a rockery in order to make building extensions to his farming business. Itamar residents and its outpost settlers on Hill777, themselves reportedly illegal squatters who had hitherto never expressed any criticisms when Ran took over Palestinian land, raised a complaint to the Samaria Regional Council to intervene and stop him, on the grounds that he has no title to that tract. Their letter of complaint remarked that,’ "We’re all full of admiration for Avri for his steps to conquer
and And or AND may refer to: Logic, grammar and computing * Conjunction, connecting two words, phrases, or clauses * Logical conjunction in mathematical logic, notated as "∧", "⋅", "&", or simple juxtaposition * Bitwise AND, a Boolean oper ...
in Samaria. But those exact same deeds are being committed today against his Jewish neighbors.' The hill is outside the boundaries of the Samaria Regional Council however, and, according to Haaretz, the Israeli Civil Administration has not applied the law to Itamar’s hilltops for a decade and a half."


See also

*
Itamar attack (2002) The Itamar attack was an attack that took place on Thursday night of 20 June 2002 around 21:00 in which two Palestinian terrorists broke into a civilian house in the Israeli settlement of Itamar in the West Bank, killing the Shabo family, murd ...
* Itamar massacre


References


External links

*
Amidst political strife and a firing range on the West Bank, the Zimmermans farm, market, and sanctify the landFriends of ItamarBreaking the Law in the West Bank – One Violation Leads to Another: Israeli Settlement Building on Private Palestinian Property
. A Report of Peace Now's Settlement Watch Team, October 2006
Friends of ITAMAR - Gem of the Hills
{{Authority control Religious Israeli settlements Populated places established in 1984 1984 establishments in the Israeli Civil Administration area Israeli settlements in the West Bank