Kafr Qaddum () is a

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 ...

town in the northern

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 13 kilometers west 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 ...

and 17 kilometers east of

Qalqilya Qalqilya or Qalqiliya () is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, which serves as the administrative center of the Qalqilya Governorate. The city had a population of 51,683 in 2017. Qalqilya is surrounded by the Israeli West Bank barrier, Israeli We ...

in the

Qalqilya Governorate The Qalqilya Governorate or Qalqiliya Governorate () is an administrative area of Palestine in the northwestern West Bank. Its capital or ''muhfaza'' (seat) is the city of Qalqilya that borders the Green Line. History During the Ottoman pe ...

. Surrounding towns include

Jit Jit (also known as jiti, jit-jive and the Harare beat) is a style of popular Zimbabwean dance music. It features a swift rhythm played on drums and accompanied by a guitar. Jit evolved out many diverse influences, including domestic chimurenga, ...

to the east and

Hajjah Hajjah () is the capital city of Hajjah Governorate in north-western Yemen. It is located 127 kilometres northwest of Sana'a, at an elevation of about 1800 metres. As of 2003, the Hajjah City District had a population of 53,887 inhabitants. E ...

to the south. According to the

Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS; ) is the official statistical institution of Palestine. Its main task is to provide credible statistical figures at the national and international levels. It is a state institution that provid ...

(PCBS), the town had a population of 3,280 inhabitants in 2017. Kafr Qaddum's total land area consists of nearly 19,000

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 (about 8,000 under Palestinian civil administration and 11,000 under complete

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 ...

i control). Its built-up area consists of 529 dunams. Olive groves make up 80% of the remaining land, 15% is used for vegetation purposes, and 5% are planted crops.Closing of agricultural roads in Kafr Qaddum village
Land Research Center 2007-02-07 Israel has expropriated roughly 2,500 dunams (618 acres) for the use of settlements nearby

Amira Hass Amira Hass (; born 28 June 1956) is an Israeli journalist and author, mostly known for her columns in the daily newspaper ''Haaretz'' covering Palestinian affairs in Gaza and the West Bank, where she has lived for almost thirty years. Biogra ...

, https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-israel-s-message-to-troops-placing-explosives-at-village-don-t-worry-it-s-combat-1.9110135 'Israel’s Message to Troops Placing Explosives at Village: Don’t Worry, It’s Combat,'

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 ...

29 August 2020. Since 2011, residents have regularly protested the Israeli blockade of their village, and through to 2020, 100 members of the community, including 6 minors, have been shot and wounded by Israeli troops. 170 villagers have been arrested by the IDF and constrained by military courts to pay fines collectively amounting to US$74,200.

Location

Kafr Qaddum is located 17.32 km north-east of

Qalqiliya Qalqilya or Qalqiliya () is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, which serves as the administrative center of the Qalqilya Governorate. The city had a population of 51,683 in 2017. Qalqilya is surrounded by the Israeli West Bank wall, with a narr ...

. It is bordered by

village to the east,

Immatain Immatin () is a Palestinian village located in the northwestern West Bank, in the Qalqilya Governorate of the State of Palestine, about seventeen kilometers southwest of Nablus. Since 2012, the village of Farratin is included in Immatin. Loca ...

to the south,

Kur The ancient Mesopotamian underworld (known in Sumerian language, Sumerian as ''Kur'', ''Irkalla'', ''Kukku'', ''Arali'', or ''Kigal'', and in Akkadian language, Akkadian as ''Erṣetu''), was the lowermost part of the Ancient near eastern cosmol ...

and Hajja village to the west, and

Beit Lid Beit Lid () is a Palestinian town in the Tulkarm Governorate in the northeastern West Bank, located a 10 kilometers southeast of Tulkarm and west of Nablus. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of ...

Qusin Qusin () is a Palestinian town in the Nablus Governorate in northern West Bank, located 8 kilometers West of Nablus. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), the town had a population of 2,251 inhabitants in 2017. Locatio ...

and

Deir Sharaf Deir Sharaf () is a Palestinian territories, Palestinian town in the Nablus Governorate of the State of Palestine, in the northern West Bank, located northwest of Nablus. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), the town h ...

to the north.Kafr Qaddum Village Profile
ARIJ, p. 4, 7

History

Ancient period

According to archaeological evidence, Kafr Qaddum has been inhabited since the

Early Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

. On the hill south of the village is the

archeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology an ...

of Khirbet 'Asafeh which was part of one settlement that spread over several hills in the area. In 1979, an archaeological excavation was conducted at the site and remains from the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

and

Hellenistic period In classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Greek history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the death of Cleopatra VII in 30 BC, which was followed by the ascendancy of the R ...

s were discovered. Moreover, remains from the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

period were discovered at the site, including several structures and a kokhim-style tomb. In the second century, a large

Samaritan Samaritans (; ; ; ), are an ethnoreligious group originating from the Hebrews and Israelites of the ancient Near East. They are indigenous to Samaria, a historical region of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah that ...

settlement was built on the site, which existed for centuries. It was mainly stone-built dwellings, according to Roman building tradition. Its inhabitants engaged in agriculture, mainly growing olives for oil. Three ancient

olive presses Olive oil extraction is the process of extracting the olive oil present in olive drupes. Olive oil is produced in the mesocarp cells, and stored in a particular type of vacuole called a lipo vacuole, i.e., every cell contains a tiny olive ...

were discovered near the village. A

destruction layer A destruction layer is a stratum found in the excavation of an archaeological site showing evidence of the hiding and burial of valuables, the presence of widespread fire, mass murder, unburied corpses, loose weapons in public places, or other evi ...

found in a number of buildings from the end of the fifth century is probably related to the Samaritan revolts. According to Benyamim Tsedaka, a Samaritan village called ''Kiriat 'Asfeh'' existed on village lands'','' and was home to the Surek and Naakon clans. Two menorah reliefs were also found at Kafr Qaddum. The settlement continued to prosper until the

early Islamic period The historiography of early Islam is the secular scholarly literature on the early history of Islam during the 7th century, from Muhammad's first purported revelations in 610 until the disintegration of the Rashidun Caliphate in 661, and arguab ...

, and it seems that its Samaritan residents were forced to convert to

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

, and in part the settlement has survived continuously since.

Ottoman era

Kafr Qaddum appeared in 1596 Ottoman tax registers as being in the ''

Nahiya A nāḥiyah ( , plural ''nawāḥī'' ), also nahiyeh, nahiya or nahia, is a regional or local type of administrative division that usually consists of a number of villages or sometimes smaller towns. In Tajikistan, it is a second-level divisi ...

'' of Jabal Qubal of the '' Liwa'' of

. It had a population of 19 households and 2 bachelors, all

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

. The villagers paid taxes on wheat, barley, summer crops, olives, and goats or beehives, and a press for olives or grapes; a total of 4,700

Akçe The ''akçe'' or ''akça'' (anglicized as ''akche'', ''akcheh'' or ''aqcha''; ; , , in Europe known as '' asper'') was a silver coin mainly known for being the chief monetary unit of the Ottoman Empire. It was also used in other states includi ...

.Hütteroth and Abdulfattah, 1977, p. 133. In 1838, ''Kefr Kaddum'' was noted as a village located in the District of ''Jurat 'Amra'', south of Nablus.Robinson and Smith, 1841, vol 3, Appendix 2, p.
127
/ref> In 1852, it was by noted Biblical scholar Edward Robinson on his travels in the region, In 1870/1871 (1288 AH), an Ottoman census listed the village with a large population of 198

household A household consists of one or more persons who live in the same dwelling. It may be of a single family or another type of person group. The household is the basic unit of analysis in many social, microeconomic and government models, and is im ...

s in the ''

nahiya A nāḥiyah ( , plural ''nawāḥī'' ), also nahiyeh, nahiya or nahia, is a regional or local type of administrative division that usually consists of a number of villages or sometimes smaller towns. In Tajikistan, it is a second-level divisi ...

'' (sub-district) of Jamma'in al-Awwal, subordinate to Nablus and in 1882 the PEF's ''

Survey of Western Palestine The PEF Survey of Palestine was a series of surveys carried out by the Palestine Exploration Fund (PEF) between 1872 and 1877 for the completed Survey of Western Palestine (SWP) and in 1880 for the soon abandoned Survey of Eastern Palestine. The ...

'' (SWP) the village (called ''Kefr Kaddum'') was described as "A good-sized village on low ground, with

well A well is an excavation or structure created on the earth by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The ...

s and olives; it has a watch-tower on the side of the chalk hill rising over it on the east, and is supplied by wells; the houses are of stone."

British Mandate period

In a

1922 census of Palestine The 1922 census of Palestine was the first census carried out by the authorities of the British Mandate of Palestine, on 23 October 1922. The reported population was 757,182, including the military and persons of foreign nationality. The divis ...

conducted by the British Mandate authorities, Kufr Qaddum had a population of 874 inhabitants, all Muslims,Barron, 1923, Table IX, Sub-district of Nablus, p
24
/ref> increasing in the 1931 census to 963, again all Muslim, in 234 houses. In the 1945 statistics the population was 1,240, all Muslims,Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics, 1945, p
18
/ref> with 18,931

s of land, according to an official land and population survey. Of this, 2,945 dunams were for plantations or irrigated land, 7,184 for cereals, while 69 dunams were built-up (urban) land.

Jordanian era

In the wake of the

1948 Arab–Israeli War The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, also known as the First Arab–Israeli War, followed the 1947–1948 civil war in Mandatory Palestine, civil war in Mandatory Palestine as the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. The civil war becam ...

, and after the

1949 Armistice Agreements The 1949 Armistice Agreements were signed between Israel and Egypt,Jordanian rule. The Jordanian census of 1961 found 1,701 inhabitants.

1967–present

Since the

Six-Day War The Six-Day War, also known as the June War, 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states, primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, Syria, and Jordan from 5 to 10June ...

in 1967, Kafr Qaddum has been under

Israeli occupation Israel has occupied the Golan Heights of Syria and the Palestinian territories since the Six-Day War of 1967. It has previously occupied the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt and southern Lebanon as well. Prior to 1967, control of the Palestinian terr ...

. After the 1995 accords, 44.6% of village land was classified as Area B, while the remaining 55.4% was classified as

Area C Area C (; ) is the fully Israeli-controlled territory in the West Bank, defined as the whole area outside the Palestinian enclaves (Areas A and B). Area C constitutes about 61 percent of the West Bank territory, containing most Israeli settle ...

. Up until 2013 Israel had confiscated 2,031 dunums of village land for the

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 ...

s of Kedumim Zefon, Jit ( Mitzpe Yishai), and Giv'at HaMerkaziz; presently all part of Kedumim. Since 2003, the road between Kafr Qaddum and Nablus is blocked thus elongating the travel distance by 14 km. Since July 2011, weekly demonstrations have been held in a demand to re-open the road.

Land issues

In the Mitzpe Yishai neighborhood of

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 ...

, there are accusations that the Israelis have improperly taken control of private Palestinian land. 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 ...

calls it "theft", though it occurred in an "orderly manner", but without any official authorization.

Main entrance

In 2003, the Israeli military closed the main entrance of the village that connects it to Nablus with a permanent roadblock, in addition, a dirt mound was put one kilometer before the roadblock, isolating one family house which made it unreachable by vehicles. In 2010, after waiting for five years for an Israeli court decision, it was ruled that the roadblock is illegal, but the court also stated that the road is "too dangerous to travel" so the road remained blocked. The roadblock makes it difficult for people to reach their farmlands because they are prohibited from driving, so they must walk on foot and carry their equipment and harvest. It also delays the fifteen minute journey to Nablus to forty minutes.

Events

*In 2012, an Israeli soldier was under investigation for the theft of a large sum of money and gold from during a raid against a resident of Kafr Qaddum. *On 2 January 2014, 85-year-old Saeed Jaser Alim became the "first Palestinian casualty of conflict with Israel in 2014; he died following a clash with Israeli soldiers at Kafr Qaddum near

". Villagers say Israeli soldiers fired teargas canisters at them, one of which entered his home, and he subsequently died. *In January 2014, a large force of Israeli soldiers entered the village in the middle of the night, seeking "two wanted men", who turned out to be two boys, aged 11 and 13. As they were leaving, they threw stun grenades into the yards of the homes they passed. *In December 2014, Bashar Saleh was shot in the leg while standing with his camera in a group of journalists. *In October 2015 Ahmed Tala’at, a photographer, was shot in the backside while standing with a group of journalists, armed only with his cameras and a gasmask. *Muayyed Shteiwi, a nurse, who brandishes a Palestinian flag at demonstrations, was shot near the groin and in the back when, hearing noises of confrontation, he left the yard of a mosque to observe what was happening. *In March 2016 an Israeli border policeman shot Khaled Shteiwi/Shatawi (11) in the leg. When an adult villager came to assist him, he too was shot by another soldier. *On 12 July 2019, Abd el-Rahman Shatawi, aged 9, was shot in the head with a live bullet by an Israeli sniper posted 100 metres away while watching a demonstration that was taking place 200 metres from his friend's home. He has since been confined to a wheelchair.

Gideon Levy Gideon Levy (, ; born 2 June 1953) is an Israeli journalist and author. Levy writes opinion pieces and a weekly column for the newspaper ''Haaretz'' that often focus on the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories. Levy has won prizes ...

, Alex Levac,
'The Protest Dispersed. Then an Israeli Sniper Shot a 9-year-old Palestinian Boy in the Head,'

21 July 2019.

, Alex Leva
'What the Israeli army does to soldiers who shoot Palestinians,'

19 November 2021 *30 January 2020 No demonstrations took place that day when Mohammed Shteiwi/Shatawi (14), hiding in a grove when soldiers arrived, took a head shot from a soldier firing a plastic-coated metal bullet at close range. He had peeked out to check out what was going on, and now lies in a vegetative state. *In August 2020, Israeli placed three boxes containing explosive devices in the village. One of them was found by a child and lightly injured an adult when he shook it. An army source said that the boxes were placed "for deterrence".

Economy

Prior to the

Second Intifada The Second Intifada (; ), also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada, was a major uprising by Palestinians against Israel and its Israeli-occupied territories, occupation from 2000. Starting as a civilian uprising in Jerusalem and October 2000 prot ...

, about 50% of the Kafr Qaddum's economy depended on work in Israel as the primary source of income, 20% depended on agriculture and animal raising, while 30% depended on jobs in private and public sectors. After 2002, over 75% of the population became jobless as business became the only other alternative for income generation. Emigration has registered a record level during the past two years, ranging between 10-15% of the total population.

Maqam al-Khalil

In the old core of the village, located in its western part near the ancient mosque, stands a sacred structure named ''

Maqam Maqam, makam, maqaam or maqām (plural maqāmāt) may refer to: Musical structures * Arabic maqam, melodic modes in traditional Arabic music ** Iraqi maqam, a genre of Arabic maqam music found in Iraq * Persian maqam, a notion in Persian clas ...

al-Khalil''. Inside this site is a cave that leads further down to a lower cave below. The structure also features a raised platform. According to local tradition, this place is believed to be the very place where the prophet

Abraham Abraham (originally Abram) is the common Hebrews, Hebrew Patriarchs (Bible), patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father who began the Covenant (biblical), covenanta ...

circumcised Circumcision is a procedure that removes the foreskin from the human penis. In the most common form of the operation, the foreskin is extended with forceps, then a circumcision device may be placed, after which the foreskin is excised. T ...

himself. It is said that the name of the village itself, ''Qaddum'', derives from the Arabic word for "

axe An axe (; sometimes spelled ax in American English; American and British English spelling differences#Miscellaneous spelling differences, see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for thousands of years to shape, split, a ...

" - referring to the tool used for Abraham's circumcision at this spot.

Demography

The inhabitants of Kafr Qaddum belong to various families, such as the Shteiwi, Jum'a, 'Obeid, Barham, Ali and 'Amer families. People with origins in Kafr Qaddum have established or settled in communities in various locations, including

Jab'a Jab'a () is a Palestinian village in the central West Bank, located 17 kilometers north of Hebron and 15 kilometers southwest of Bethlehem. Located three kilometers east of the Green Line, it is located in the Seam Zone, surrounded by the Isra ...

Tammun Tammun () is a Palestinian town in the Tubas Governorate of the State of Palestine, located 13 kilometers northeast of Nablus and five kilometers south of Tubas in the northeastern West Bank. Tammun had a population of approximately 10,795 inhabi ...

Iksal Iksal (, , ''Kislot Tavor'') is an Arab local council in northern Israel, about southeast of Nazareth. It has an area of 9,000 dunams and a population of primarily Muslim inhabitants. Name The name of the town is believed to derive from Kisl ...

, Kafr Zibad, Rafiddiya, '

Attil Attil () is a Palestinian town in the Tulkarm Governorate in the eastern West Bank, northeast of Tulkarm. Attil is the connection point between the other villages and Tulkarm. It is bordered by Illar to the east; Baqa ash-Sharqiyya to the ...

, and

.Grossman, D. (1986). "Oscillations in the Rural Settlement of Samaria and Judaea in the Ottoman Period". in Shomron studies. Dar, S., Safrai, S., (eds). Tel Aviv: Hakibbutz Hameuchad Publishing House. p. 353

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * *

External links

Kafr Qaddum
ISM
Kufr Qaddum
IWPS

*Survey of Western Palestine, Map 11:
IAAWikimedia commons

KAfr Qaddum Village (Fact Sheet)

Applied Research Institute–Jerusalem The Applied Research Institute - Jerusalem (ARIJ; ) is a Palestinian NGO founded in 1990 with its main office in Bethlehem in the West Bank. ARIJ is actively working on research projects in the fields of management of natural resources, water m ...

(ARIJ)
Kafr Qaddum Village Profile
ARIJ
Kafr Qaddum, aerial photo
ARIJ
Development Priorities and Needs in Kafr Qaddum
ARIJ
New Colonial Activity in Kafr Qadoom Village – Qalqilyia District
March 14, 2000, POICA
Violations during the olive picking season are continuing
21, October, 2009, POICA
Several injured in Friday West Bank demonstrations
Mar.16, 2012 Haaretz
IDF using dogs to police anti-fence protests in West Bank Officer from Oketz canine unit let his dog loose on protesters in Kfar Kadum, near Nablus
Mar.19, 2012, Haaretz {{Authority control Qalqilya Governorate Towns in the West Bank Municipalities of Palestine Ancient Samaritan settlements