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Rosh Tzurim ( he, רֹאשׁ צוּרִים, eng. Top of the Rocks) is an
Israeli settlement and religious
kibbutz in the
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 ...
established in 1969. It is located about south of Jerusalem, 3.9 km east of the
Green Line, inside
barrier wall. A member of the
Religious Kibbutz Movement
The Religious Kibbutz Movement ( he, הקיבוץ הדתי, ''HaKibbutz HaDati'') is an organizational framework for Orthodox kibbutzim in Israel. Its membership includes 22 communities, 16 of them traditional kibbutzim, and 6 others in the cat ...
, it falls under the jurisdiction of the
Gush Etzion Regional Council
The Gush Etzion Regional Council ( he, מועצה אזורית גוש עציון, ''Mo'atza Azorit Gush Etzion'') is a regional council in the northern Judean Hills, the northern part of the southern area of the West Bank, administering the se ...
. 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.
History
According to
ARIJ, Israel confiscated land from two nearby
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 Rosh Tzurim: 110
dunams from
Nahalin
Nahalin, also spelled Nahaleen, ( ar, نحالين) is a Palestinian village located in the Bethlehem Governorate to the southwest of Bethlehem in the West Bank. The word ''nahaleen'' is Arabic for those who collect honey from bees. The village was ...
, and 780 dunams from
Khirbet Beit Zakariyyah
Khirbet Beit Zakariyyah (variants: Beit Iskâria, Khirbet Zakariah, Beit Skâria) is a small Palestinian village in the West Bank, perched on a hill that rises about above sea level. It is located in between the larger Israeli settlements of Al ...
.
The settlement was established in 1969 by members of
Bnei Akiva
Bnei Akiva ( he, בְּנֵי עֲקִיבָא, , "Children of Akiva") is the largest religious Zionist youth movement in the world, with over 125,000 members in 42 countries. It was first established in Mandatory Palestine in 1929.
History
B ...
Religious Scouts and
Nahal soldiers. The Name originates from the Biblical passage "For from the top of the mountains I see him" (Num 23:9) - just like the neighbouring village
Gevaot.
Rosh Tzurim is located on the site of the ancient
Beth Zechariah and on a hilltop that had previously been occupied by
Ein Tzurim
Ein Tzurim ( he, עֵין צוּרִים, ''lit.'' Rock Spring) is a religious kibbutz in southern Israel. Located south of Kiryat Malakhi, it falls under the jurisdiction of Shafir Regional Council and is a member of the Religious Kibbutz Moveme ...
, a kibbutz that
was destroyed in the
1948 Arab-Israeli War by the Jordanian
Arab Legion
The Arab Legion () was the police force, then regular army of the Emirate of Transjordan, a British protectorate, in the early part of the 20th century, and then of independent Jordan, with a final Arabization of its command taking place in 1 ...
and later re-established in the
Lakhish area.
Rosh Tzurim went through a privatization process, first through the rental of available houses, and later an additional neighborhood, Nof Tzurim, was built on the kibbutz.
Economy
The kibbutz raises turkeys, produces milk and grows grapes for wine production along with other fruits.
References
{{Authority control
Religious Kibbutz Movement
Nahal settlements
Populated places established in 1969
Religious Israeli settlements
Gush Etzion Regional Council
1969 establishments in the Israeli Military Governorate