Alfei Menashe ( he, אַלְפֵי מְנַשֶׁה, ar, ألفي منشيه, , ''lit.'' Thousands of
Manasseh
Manasseh () is both a given name and a surname. Its variants include Manasses and Manasse.
Notable people with the name include:
Surname
* Ezekiel Saleh Manasseh (died 1944), Singaporean rice and opium merchant and hotelier
* Jacob Manasseh (die ...
) is an
Israeli settlement located in the
seam zone
Seam Zone ( he, מרחב התפר) is a term used to refer to a land area in the Israeli-occupied West Bank located east of the Green Line and west of Israel's separation barrier, populated largely by Israelis in settlements such as Alfei Menas ...
on the western edge of the central
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 ...
. Its name is taken from the bible (Deuteronomy 33:17). It was granted
local council status in 1987. In its population was .
The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank
illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.
History
According to
ARIJ, Israel confiscated land from several
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 ...
villages in order to construct Alfei Menashe:
* 1,943 dunums of land (43.8% of the total village lands) was taken from
Nabi Ilyas,
* 651 dunums of land were taken from
‘Arab Abu Farda,
* 131 dunums of land were taken from
Islah
Islah or Al-Islah (الإصلاح ,إصلاح, ') is an Arabic word, usually translated as "reform", in the sense of "to improve, to better, to put something into a better position, fundamentalism, correction, correcting something and removing v ...
,
* 51 dunes were taken from
Ras Atiya.
Ras ‘Atiya Village Profile (including Ras at Tira & Wadi ar Rasha Localities)
ARIJ, p. 18
The town's proximity to the Green Line (less than east) and its similar proximity to the Palestinian Arab
Palestinians ( ar, الفلسطينيون, ; he, פָלַסְטִינִים, ) or Palestinian people ( ar, الشعب الفلسطيني, label=none, ), also referred to as Palestinian Arabs ( ar, الفلسطينيين العرب, label=non ...
town of Qalqilyah
Qalqilya or Qalqiliya ( ar, قلقيلية, Qalqīlyaḧ) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank which serves as the administrative center of the Qalqilya Governorate of the State of Palestine. In the 2007 census, the city had a population of 41, ...
has made its inclusion on the Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
i side of the West Bank barrier
The Israeli West Bank barrier, comprising the West Bank Wall and the West Bank fence, is a separation barrier built by Israel along the Green Line and inside parts of the West Bank. It is a contentious element of the Israeli–Palestinian ...
controversial, especially as the looping nature of the barrier's path forms a quasi-enclave of some 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 ...
villages to its south. In September 2005, Israel's Supreme Court ruled that the government must consider re-routing the barrier in this area. Work was begun in the summer of 2009 to construct a new route for the barrier, which will no longer incorporate the Palestinian village of Ras al-Tira (and several other villages) on the Israeli side. The work was finished in 2011. (source: Google Earth)
The settlement is the hometown of Israel's most successful mixed martial artist
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...
Noad Lahat.
References
External links
Official website
{{Authority control
Mixed Israeli settlements
Local councils in Israel
Populated places established in 1983
1983 establishments in the Palestinian territories
Israeli settlements in the West Bank