Kiryat Arba
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| Hebrew transcription(s) | |
| • ISO 259 | Qiryat ʔarbaˁ |
| • Also spelled | Qiryat Arba (official) |
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  Kiryat Arba | |
| Coordinates:31°31′42″N35°7′7″E / 31.52833°N 35.11861°E /31.52833; 35.11861 | |
| Region | West Bank |
| District | Judea and Samaria Area |
| Founded | 1968–1971 |
| Government | |
| • Head of Municipality | Israel Bramson |
| Area | |
• Total | 4,386dunams (4.386 km2; 1.693 sq mi) |
| Population (2023)[1] | |
• Total | 7,572 |
| • Density | 1,726/km2 (4,471/sq mi) |
| Name meaning | Town of the Four [Giants] |
| Website | Official website |
Kiryat Arba orQiryat Arba (Hebrew:קִרְיַת־אַרְבַּע,lit. 'Town of the Four') is an urbanIsraeli settlement on the outskirts ofHebron, in the southernIsraeli-occupiedWest Bank. Founded in 1968, in 2023 it had a population of 7,572.
The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bankillegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.[2]
The modern settlement derives its name from a Kiryat Arba mentioned in theHebrew Bible as the former name of Hebron and as the place whereAbraham's wife,Sarah, has died: "And Sarah died at Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron)" (Genesis 23:2). TheBook of Joshua says: "Now the name of Hebron formerly was Kiriath-arba; this Arba was the greatest man among the Anakim." (Joshua 14:15).[3][better source needed] It is also one of the places listed inNehemiah where some of the people of Judah were living. There is no reference to Hebron in Nehemiah, however.[4][better source needed]
There are various explanations for the name, not mutually exclusive. According to the biblical commentatorRashi,Kiryat Arba ("Town ofArba") means either the town (kirya) ofArba, the giant who had three sons, or the town of the four giants:Anak (the son of Arba) and his three sons – Ahiman, Sheshai and Talmai – who are described as being the sons of a "giant" inNumbers 13:22: "On the way through the Negev, they (Joshua andCaleb) came to Hebron where [they saw] Ahiman, Sheshai and Talmi, descendants of the Giant (ha-anak)..."[5][better source needed]
A secret government plan to establish the settlement began with the expropriation of Palestinian land, ostensibly for a military base.[6] According to the minutes of a meeting between senior officials in the office of Defense MinisterMoshe Dayan in July 1970, houses would be constructed "for military purposes" before being turned over to Israeli civilians as a settlement.[6] This method of settlement foundation, which was very common at the time, was intended to give the appearance of compliance with international law.[6] Israeli settlers claimed that Israeli settlement around Hebron was justified in light of the1929 Hebron massacre and the continuous presence of Israelis in the area until then.[7] The town is a self-sufficient community, with pre-nursery throughpost-secondary educational institutions, medical facilities,shopping centers, a bank, and apost office. Kiryat Arba attainedlocal council status in 1979. While Kiryat Arba is located within the territory of theHar Hebron Regional Council, it is an independent local council.[8][9]
Israeli settlers living at Kiryat Arba have been targets of multiple attacks by Palestinians. In 1980, three 20-year-old yeshiva students studying in Kiryat Arba were among thesix Jews killed by terrorists after praying in theCave of the Patriarchs in Hebron on Friday night.[10] Between 1981 and 1986, four people from Kiryat Arba were shot and wounded in the Hebron marketplace. In 1994, a 17-year Sarit Prigral from Kiryat Arba was shot and killed in a drive-by shooting.[11][12] In March 2003, Eli and Dina Horowitz were shot to death in their home and five others wounded.[13][14] On November 26, 2009, a Palestinian stabbed and wounded two Israelis at a Kiryat Arba gas station. The Palestinian was then shot dead by an Israeli soldier.[15] On August 31, 2010, four residents, including a pregnant woman, wereshot to death in their car byHamas militants outside Kiryat Arba.[16] ThePalestinian Authority arrested the perpetrators, but promptly released them after Hamas accused it of treason. On October 8, 2010, Israeli troops killed two of the perpetrators and arrested six during a raid inHebron. In October 2011, a Palestinian stoning attack near Kiryat Arba caused the car of a resident to overturn, killing him and his infant son. The man's handgun and wallet were then stolen.[17] Following an investigation byShin Bet, theIDF andpolice, two Palestinians fromHalhul were arrested for throwing the stones that caused the car to overturn, and three others were arrested for stealing the gun.[18] On June 30, 2016, a Palestinian from the nearby village ofBani Naim entered a house in Kiryat Arba and stabbed to death 13-year-old Hallel Yaffa Ariel, an Israeli-American girl. The attacker was shot to death, after also wounding a security guard who responded to the Ariel stabbing.[19]
In October 2018, Eliyahu Libman was elected council head beating Malachi Levinger, the son ofMoshe Levinger, who had served as head of council for 10 years.[20]
The settlement has the following high schools and yeshivas:
After the establishment of Kiryat Arba in 1971, the residents of the community campaigned for the creation of a local governing body for their settlement. The first local authority established in Kiryat Arba was a local committee known as the Kiryat Arba Administration ("Minhelet Kiryat Arba"), founded in 1974 by order of the IDF Commander in Judea and Samaria.
It functioned as an appointed council under the supervision of the Israeli Ministry of the Interior.
On 1 March 1981, local councils were formally established throughoutJudea and Samaria, and the Kiryat Arba Administration became alocal council.
The first municipal elections were held in 1985.
Media related toKiryat Arba at Wikimedia Commons| Cities |  | |
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