Hebron
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2008-07-01T21:07:13Z
Nishidani
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[[WP:UNDO|Undid]] revision 222899766 by [[Special:Contributions/HagiMalachi|HagiMalachi]] ([[User talk:HagiMalachi|talk]])
:''This article is about the city in the Middle East. For other uses of the name, see [[Hebron (disambiguation)]].''
{{Infobox Palestinian Authority muni
|name=Hebron
|image=Hebron172.JPG
|imgsize=250
|caption=Downtown Hebron
|arname=الخليل
|meaning=
|founded=
|type=muna
|typefrom=1997
|altOffSp=Al-Khalīl
|altUnoSp=Al-Ḫalīl
|governorate=hb
|latd=31|latm=32|lats=00|latNS=N
|longd=35 |longm=05|longs=42|longEW=E
|population=167,000
|popyear=2006
|area=
|areakm=
|mayor=Khaled Osaily
}}
'''Hebron''' ([[Arabic language|Arabic]]: {{Audio|ArHebron.ogg|الخليل}} al-Ḫalīl or al Khalīl; [[Hebrew languages|Hebrew]]: {{Audio|He-Hebron.ogg|חֶבְרוֹן}}, [[Standard Hebrew]]: Ḥevron, [[Tiberian vocalization|Tiberian Hebrew]]: Ḥeḇrôn) is a city at the center of the [[West Bank]], along the eponymous [[Mount Hebron]]. It is home to some 166,000 [[Palestinian people|Palestinians]] and 700–800 Israeli settlers.<ref>For the figure of 700 settlers see Jennifer Medina, [http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/22/world/middleeast/22settlers.html?_r=1&&pagewanted=print&oref=slogin "'Settlers’ Defiance Reflects Postwar Israeli Changes"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', [[April 22]], [[2007]].</ref><ref> For the figure of 800 settlers, see Yaakov Katz, Tovah Lazaroff, [http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1176152784857&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull "Hebron settlers try to buy more homes"], ''[[The Jerusalem Post]]'', [[April 14]], [[2007]].</ref> Hebron lies 930 [[metre]]s (3,050 ft) [[above sea level]]. Located in the [[Bible|Biblical]] region of [[Judea]], it is the second holiest city in [[Judaism]], after Jerusalem.<ref name=JVL2>{{cite web |url= http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/vie/Hebron.html |title=Hebron |work=Virtual Israel Experience |publisher=Jewish Virtual Library}}</ref>
The name "Hebron" traces back to the same root as ''Haver'', or "friend".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.abarim-publications.com/Arie/Names/Hebron.html |title=The name Hebron: meaning, origin, and etymology |work=Abarim Publications' Biblical Name Vault}}</ref> In Arabic, "Ibrahim al-Khalil" ("إبراهيم الخليل") means "Ibrahim the friend", signifying that, according to [[Islamic]] teaching, [[Allah]] (God) chose [[Ibrahim]] (i.e. [[Abraham]]) as his friend.<ref>[http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/004.qmt.html#004.125 Surah 4 Ayara (verse) 125], ''[[Qur'an]]'' ([http://www.geocities.com/hollywood/lot/6093/4nisa.html source text])</ref>
Hebron is located 30 km south of [[Jerusalem]]. It is famous for its [[grapes]], [[limestone]], [[pottery]] workshops and [[glassblowing]] factories. It is also the location of the major [[dairy product]] manufacturer, al-Jebrini. The old city of Hebron is characterized by narrow, winding streets, flat-roofed stone houses, and old [[bazaar]]s. It is home to [[Hebron University]] and the [[Palestine Polytechnic University]].
[[Image:Cave of the Patriarchs.jpg|thumb|250px|left|The [[Cave of the Patriarchs]], revered by Jews and Muslims.]]
The most famous historic site in Hebron sits on the [[Cave of the Patriarchs]]. The site is holy to all three [[Abrahamic religion|Abrahamic faiths]], [[Judaism]], [[Christianity]], and [[Islam]], due to their traditional connections to [[Abraham]]. According to ''[[Genesis]]'', he purchased the cave and the field surrounding it to bury his wife [[Sarah]], and subsequently Abraham [[Isaac]], [[Rebekah]], [[Jacob]] and [[Leah]] were also buried in the cave (the remaining [[Matriarch]], [[Rachel]], is [[Rachel's Tomb|buried outside Bethlehem]]). For this reason, Hebron is also referred to as "the City of the Patriarchs" in Judaism, and it is the second of the [[Four Holy Cities|four holiest cities in Judaism]] (along with [[Jerusalem]], [[Tiberias]] and [[Safed]]).<ref>[http://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=5160883 Israeli Settlers Fight Eviction from Hebron : NPR<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Over and around the cave itself [[church]]es, [[synagogue]]s and [[mosque]]s have been built throughout history (see "[[Hebron#Hebron|History]]" below). The Isaac Hall is now the [[Cave of the Patriarchs#Islam|Ibrahimi Mosque]], while the Abraham Hall and Jacob Hall serve as a Jewish synagogue. In [[History of Christianity#Church of the Early Middle Ages (476–800)|medieval Christian]] tradition, Hebron was one of the three cities, the other two being [[Juttah]] and [[Ain Karim]], that boasted of being the home of Mary's cousin, [[Elizabeth (Biblical person)|Elizabeth]], the mother of [[John the Baptist]] and the wife of [[Zechariah (priest)|Zacharias]].<ref>Marcello Craveri,''The Life of Jesus: An assessment through modern historical evidence,'' 1967, p.25.</ref>
Adjacent to Hebron is the densely populated [[Israeli settlement]] of [[Kiryat Arba]], a [[local council (Israel)|separate municipality]], but within several minutes walking distance from Hebron's [[Cave of the Patriarchs]].
{{TOCleft}}
== History ==
=== Ancient period ===
Hebron was an old [[Canaan]]ite royal city before it became one of the most ancient cities of the [[Kingdom of Judah]]. Archeological excavations reveal traces of strong fortifications datable to the Early [[Bronze Age]]. The city was destroyed in a conflagration, and resettled in the late Middle Bronze Age. A cultic structure, with [[cuneiform]] fragments listing animals to be sacrificed, is attested from this period.<ref>Avraham Negev, Shimon Gibson, ''Archaeological Encyclopedia of the Holy Land'', Continuum International Publishing Group (2001) p.224-5</ref> It is mentioned in the Bible as being the site of [[Abraham]]'s purchase of the [[Cave of the Patriarchs]] from the [[Hittites]], in a narrative that some recent historians regard as constituting a late 'pious prehistory' of Israel's settlement.<ref>Israel Finkelstein, Neil Asher Silberman, '' The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Its Sacred Texts,'' Free Press, New York, 2001, p.45.</ref> The Abrahamic traditions associated with Hebron are nomadic, and may reflect a [[Kenite]] element, since the nomadic Kenites are said to have long occupied the city,<ref> [[W. Robertson Smith]], ''Kinship and Marriage in Early Arabia,'' ed.Stanley A.Cook (1903) Beacon Press, reprint, Boston (n.d.) p.200</ref> and ''Heber'' is the name for a Kenite clan.<ref>E:G:H.Kraeling, "The Early Cult of Hebron and Judg. 16:1–3", in ''The American Journal of Semitic Languages and Literatures,'' vol.41, No.3 (April,) 1025 pp.174–178 p.178.</ref> Hebron is also mentioned there as being formerly called [[Kiryat Arba|Kirjath-arba]], or "city of four", possibly referring to a [[federation]] of four townlets, or four hills,<ref>Robert Alter, tr.''Genesis: Translation and Commentary'', 1996 p.108</ref> before being conquered by [[Caleb]] and the [[Israelites]] ([[Book of Joshua|Joshua]] {{sourcetext|source=Bible|version=King James|book=Joshua|chapter=14|verse=15|nobook=}}). Hebron became one of the principal centers of the [[Tribe of Judah]], and the Judahite King [[David]] reigned in the city until the capture of [[Jerusalem]], when the capital of the [[Kingdom of Israel]] was moved to that city.
{{seealso|LMLK seal}}
After the destruction of the [[First Temple]], most of the Jewish inhabitants of Hebron were exiled and their place was taken by [[Edomites]] at about 587 BCE. [[Herod the Great]] built the wall which still surrounds the [[Cave of Machpelah]]. During the first war against the Romans, Hebron was conquered by [[Simon Bar Giora]], the leader of the [[Sicarii]]. Eventually it became part of the [[Byzantine Empire]]. The [[Byzantine Emperor]] [[Justinian I]] erected a Christian church over the Cave of Machpelah in the 6th century CE which was later destroyed by the [[Sassanid]] general [[Shahrbaraz]] in [[614]] when [[Khosrau II]]'s armies besieged and took Jerusalem.
[[Image:Frith, Francis (1822-1898) - Views in the Holy Land - n. 428 - Hebron. Northern Half of the City - recto.jpg|thumb|250px|left|Northern Hebron in the mid-19th century (1822–1898).]]
=== Medieval period ===
The [[Islamic Caliphate]] established rule over Hebron without resistance in 638, and converted the Byzantine church at the site of Abraham's tomb into a mosque. Trade greatly expanded, in particular with [[Bedouin]]s in the [[Negev]] and the population to the east of the [[Dead Sea]]. During this period, Muslims converted the Byzantine church at the site of the [[Cave of the Patriarchs]] into a mosque. Both Muslim and Christian sources note that [[Umar]] allowed Jews to build a synagogue and burial ground nearby, while the 9th century [[Karaite Judaism|Karaite]] scholar [[Zedakah ben Shomron]] wrote about a permanent Jewish presence and described a Jewish man as the "keeper of the cave". Arab geographer [[al-Muqaddasi]] described "a synagogue and central kitchen which the Jews had set up for all the pilgrims rich and poor" at the turn of the century.
Arab rule lasted in the area, which was predominantly populated by peasants of various Christian persuasions,<ref>Steven Runciman,''A History of the Crusades'' (1951) 1965 vol.1 p.303.</ref> until 1099, when the Christian [[Crusade]]r [[Godfrey de Bouillon]] took Hebron and renamed it "Castellion Saint Abraham". He then gave Hebron to [[Gerard of Avesnes]] as the fief of Saint Abraham. Gerard of Avesnes was a knight from [[Hainault]] held hostage at [[Arsuf]], north of [[Jaffa]], who had been wounded by Godfrey's own forces during the siege of the port, and later returned by the Muslims to Godfrey as a token of good will.<ref>Runciman, ''A History of the Crusades'', pp.308–309.</ref> As a [[Franks|Frankish]] garrison, soon governed by [[Tancred, Prince of Galilee]], its defence was precarious, being 'little more than an island in a Moslem ocean'.<ref>Runciman, ''A History of the Crusades'', vol.2 p.4.</ref> The Crusaders converted the mosque and the synagogue into a church and expelled Jews living there. In 1106, an Egyptian campaign thrust into southern Palestine and almost succeeded in wresting back Hebron from the crusaders from [[Baldwin I of Jerusalem]], who personally led the counter-charge to beat the Muslim forces off. The [[Damascus|Damascene]] nobleman and historian [[Ibn al-Qalanisi]] in his chronicle alludes at this time to the discovery of [[relics]] purported to be those of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in this period, a discovery which excited eager curiosity among all three communities in Palestine, Muslim, Jewish, and Christian.<ref> ‘C.Kohler, ‘Un nouveau récit de l’invention des Patriarches Abraham, Isaac et Jacob à Hebron,’ in ''[[Revue de l’Orient Latin]]'', vol 4 (1896) Paris pp.477ff. (2) Runciman, ''A History of the Crusades'' vol.2 p.319</ref> Towards the end of the period of Crusader rule, in 1166 [[Maimonides]] was able to visit Hebron and wrote, "And on the first day of the week, the ninth day of the month of [[Marheshvan]], I left Jerusalem for Hebron to kiss the graves of my forefathers in the Cave of Makhpela. And on that very day, I stood in the cave and I prayed, praised be God for everything."
[[Image:Maimonides-2.jpg|thumb|right|150px|[[Maimonides]] established a yearly holiday for himself and his sons, the 9th of [[Cheshvan]], commemorating the day he merited to pray at the [[Cave of the Patriarchs]].]]
The Kurdish Muslim [[Saladin|Salaḥ ed-Dīn]] took Hebron in 1187, and changed the name of the city back to "Hebron". A [[Kurd]]ish quarter still existed in the town during the early period of [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] rule.<ref>Michael Avi-Yonah, ''A History of Israel and the Holy Land'', Continuum, New York & London, 2003 p.297</ref> [[Richard I of England|Richard the Lionheart]] subsequently took the city soon after. [[Richard of Cornwall]], brought from England to settle the dangerous feuding between [[Knights Templar|Templars]] and [[Hospitallers]], whose rivalry imperilled the treaty guaranteeing regional stability stipulated with the Egyptian [[Sultan]] [[as-Salih Ayub]], managed to impose peace on the area. But soon after his departure, feuding broke out and in [[1241]] the Templars mounted a damaging raid on what was, by now, Moslem Hebron, in violation of agreements.<ref>Runciman,''A History of the Crusades'' vol.3 p.219.</ref>
In 1260, [[Baibars|al-Malik al-Zahir Rukn al-Din Baibars al-Bunduqdari]] established [[Mamluk]] rule; the [[minaret]]s were built onto the structure of the Cave of Machpelah/Ibrahami Mosque at that time. During this period, a small Jewish community continued to live in Hebron; however, the climate was less tolerant of Jews and Christians than it had been under prior Islamic rule. Jews wishing to visit the tomb were often taxed, and in 1266 a decree was established barring Jews and Christians from entering the Tomb of the Patriarchs; they were only allowed to climb up to a certain step outside the Eastern wall. [[John Mandeville|Sir John Mandeville]] wrote that the Jews and Christians were viewed "as dogs."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.romanization.com/books/mandeville/chap09.html |title=Chapter IX |last=Mandeville |first=John |work=The Travels of Sir John Mandeville}}</ref> Many Jewish and Christian visitors wrote about the community, among them a student of [[Nachmanides]] (1270), Rabbi [[Ishtori Haparchi]] (1322), [[Stephen von Gumfenberg]] (1449), [[Rabbi Meshulam]] from [[Volterra]] (1481) and Rabbi [[Obadiah ben Abraham]], a famous biblical commentator (1489). As early as 1333, there was an account from [[Hakham Yishak Hilo]] of [[Larissa]], Greece, who arrived in Hebron and observed Jews working in the cotton trade and glassworks. He noted that in Hebron there was an "ancient synagogue in which they prayed day and night."
=== Ottoman rule ===
Throughout the [[Ottoman Empire]] rule, (1517-1917), groups of Jews from other parts of the Holy Land, and exiles from Spain and other parts of the diaspora went and settled there. Hebron at this time became a center of Jewish learning. In 1540 Rabbi [[Malkiel Ashkenazi]] bought a courtyard and established the [[Abraham Avinu Synagogue]]. In 1807, the Jewish community purchased a 5 dunam (5,000 m²) plot, upon which the city's wholesale market stands today.
In 1834 Hebron was sacked by the army of [[Ibrahim Pasha]] of Egypt. Although property was destroyed and looted, most of the Muslim population is said to have been able to flee. Within the larger sacking there was a pogrom targeted at the city's Jews, five of whom were murdered.<ref>Joseph Schwarz, translator Isaac Leeser, A Descriptive Geography and Brief Historical Sketch of Palestine, A. Hart, Philadelphia, 1850 p. 399 </ref> In 1841, the population of Hebron was given, according to the number of taxpayers, i.e., male heads of households that owned even a very small shop or piece of land. There were two hundred Jews with "European protections", one Christian household, 41 Jewish households and 1,500 Muslim households, in a total population of 10,000.<ref>Edward Robinson and Eli Smith, Biblical Researches in Palestine, Mt. Sinai, and Arabia Petraea, Boston, Crocker and Brewster, 1841, p. 453</ref> The Jewish community was under French protection until 1914. Hebron was highly conservative in its religious outlook, with a strong tradition of hostility to Jews.<ref>Henry Laurens, ''La Question de Palestine'', Fayard, Paris vol.1, p.508</ref>
=== Under the British mandate ===
In December 1917 and during [[World War I]], the British occupied Hebron. In the [[1929 Hebron massacre]], Arabs killed 67 Jews and wounded 60, and Jewish homes and synagogues were ransacked. Two years later, 35 families moved back into the ruins of the Jewish quarter, but after [[1936-1939 Arab revolt in Palestine|further riots]], the British Government decided to move all Jews out of Hebron "to prevent another massacre". Hebron remained as a part of the [[British Mandate of Palestine]] until 1948.
=== Jordanian rule ===
[[Image:Yeshivat-shavey-hebron.JPG|thumb|left|250px|Shavei Hebron yeshiva in the Beit Romano building of the Jewish quarter in old Hebron. The modern city is visible at the top edge.]]
Following the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, [[Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan|Jordan]] took over the [[Rule of the West Bank and East Jerusalem by Jordan|control of Hebron and the rest of the West Bank]]. During this time, Israelis were not allowed to enter the West Bank. The Jewish Quarter was destroyed.
=== Israeli rule ===
After the June 1967 [[Six Day War]] Hebron came under Israeli control with the rest of the [[West Bank]].
In 1968, a group of Jewish settlers, with the tacit support of [[Levi Eshkol]] and [[Yigal Allon]],<ref>Gershom Gorenberg, ''The Accidental Empire: Israel and the Birth of the Settlements, 1967-1977,'' Times Books, Henry Holt & Co., New York 2007 pp.137ff.</ref> began to reside in the city, though a government compromise soon focused the Jewish presence to the east in the new [[Israeli settlement|settlement]] of [[Kiryat Arba]]. Beginning in 1979, Jewish settlers moved from Kiryat Arba to found the [[Committee of The Jewish Community of Hebron]] in the former Jewish neighbourhood near the [[Abraham Avinu Synagogue]], and later to other Hebron neighborhoods including [[Tel Rumeida]].{{seealso|#Jewish settlement after 1967}}
==== Post-Oslo Accord ====
[[Image:Israeli soldiers on Palestine street.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Open-air market in city being patrolled by Israeli troops (2004).]]
Since early 1997, following the [[Hebron Agreement]], the city has been divided into two sectors: H1 and H2. The H1 sector, home to around 120,000 Palestinians, came under the control of the [[Palestinian National Authority|Palestinian Authority]], in accordance with Hebron Protocol.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://domino.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/c7d7b824004ff5c585256ae700543ebc?OpenDocument |title=Protocol Concerning the Redeployment in Hebron |date=[[January 17]], [[1997]] |work=United Nations Information System on the Question of Palestine |publisher=Non-UN document.}}</ref> H2, which was inhabited by around 30,000 Palestinians,<ref name="ghost">{{cite news |first=Meron |last=Rapoport |title=Ghost town |url=http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=646948 |work=Haaretz |date=[[November 17]], [[2005]]}}</ref> remained under Israeli military control in order to protect some 800-900 Jewish residents living in the old Jewish quarter, now an enclave near the center of the town. During the years since the outbreak of the [[Second Intifada]], the Palestinian population in H2 has decreased greatly, the drop in large part having been identified with extended curfews and movement restrictions placed on Palestinian residents of the sector by the IDF for security needs, including the closing of Palestinian shops in certain areas. Settler harassment of their Palestinian neighbours in H2 was a reason for several dozen Palestinian families to depart the areas adjacent to the Israeli population.<ref>{{cite news |title=Israeli NGO issues damning report on situation in Hebron |url=http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/AllDocsByUNID/a17e4c9ace4785bac1256d87004bca62 |work=Agence France-Presse |publisher=ReliefWeb |date=[[August 19]], [[2003]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.btselem.org/Download/200308_Hebron_Area_H2_Eng.pdf |title=Hebron, Area H-2: Settlements Cause Mass Departure of Palestinians |date=August 2003 |work=[[B'Tselem]]}} "In total, 169 families lived on the three streets in September 2000, when the intifada began. Since then, seventy-three families—forty-three percent—have left their homes."</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www2.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/YAOI-6UN95C?OpenDocument |title=Palestine Refugees: a challenge for the International Community |date=[[October 10]], [[2006]] |work=United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East |publisher=ReliefWeb |quote=Settler violence has forced out over half the Palestinian population in some neighborhoods in the downtown area of Hebron. This once bustling community is now eerily deserted, and presents a harrowing existence for those few Palestinians who dare to remain or who are too deep in poverty to move elsewhere.}}</ref><ref name=btselem2007>{{cite web| url=http://www.btselem.org/english/Publications/Summaries/200705_Hebron.asp | title=Ghost Town: Israel's Separation Policy and Forced Eviction of Palestinians from the Center of Hebron |date=May 2007 | work = [[B'Tselem]]}}</ref><ref name="ghost"/>
[[Image:شارع عين سارة.jpg|thumb|left|A busy street in Hebron]]
The Hebron Jewish community has been subject to many attacks by Palestinian militants since the Oslo agreement,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Terrorism-+Obstacle+to+Peace/Palestinian+terror+before+2000/Fatal+Terrorist+Attacks+in+Israel+Since+the+DOP+-S.htm|title=Fatal Terrorist Attacks in Israel Since the DOP (Sept 1993)|date=[[24 September]], [[2000]]|accessdate=2007-04-13|publisher=[[Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs]]}}</ref> especially during the period of the Second Intifada which saw [[suicide attack|suicide bombings]], stabbings, and thousands of rounds fired on it from the Abu-Sneina neighbourhood above it. 12 Israelis were killed in one ambush of worshippers on the way to the [[Cave of the Patriarchs]], while an [[Shalhevet Pass|infant was killed in a sniper attack]].<ref name="ghost"/><ref>[http://info.jpost.com/C002/Supplements/CasualtiesOfWar/index.html Casualties of War] ''[[The Jerusalem Post]]''.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Terrorism-+Obstacle+to+Peace/Palestinian+terror+since+2000/Victims+of+Palestinian+Violence+and+Terrorism+sinc.htm|title=Victims of Palestinian Violence and Terrorism since September 2000|accessdate=2007-04-13|publisher=[[Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.adl.org/Israel/israel_attacks.asp|title=Major Terrorist Attacks in Israel|accessdate=2007-04-13|publisher=[[Anti-Defamation League]]}}</ref> Two [[Temporary International Presence in Hebron]] observers were killed by Palestinian gunmen in a shooting attack on the road to Hebron.<ref>[http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200203/s514316.htm Two Norwegian observers killed near Hebron: Israeli TV], ABC News online, March 27, 2002.</ref><ref>[http://www.tiph.org/en/News/?module=Articles;action=Article.publicShow;ID=1579 Two TIPH members killed near Hebron], Temporary International Presence in the City of Hebron website, March 27, 2002.</ref>
In 1994, Israeli physician [[Baruch Goldstein]] opened fire on Muslims at prayer in the [[Cave of the Patriarchs massacre]], killing 29, before the survivors overcame and killed him. This event was condemned by the Israeli Government, and the extreme right-wing [[Kach and Kahane Chai|Kach]] party was banned as a result.
A year later, Hebron's mayor, [[Mustafa Abdel Nabi]], invited the [[Christian Peacemaker Teams]] to assist the local Palestinian community in opposition to what they describe as Israeli military occupation, collective punishment, settler harassment, home demolitions and land confiscation.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.cpt.org/publications/history.php |title=History/Mission of CPT |work=Christian Peacemaker Teams}}</ref>
An international unarmed observer force—the [[Temporary International Presence in Hebron]] (TIPH) was subsequently established to help the normalization of the situation and to maintain a buffer between the Palestinian Arab population of the city and the Jews residing in their enclave in the old city. On February 8, 2006, TIPH temporarily left Hebron after attacks on their headquarters by some Palestinians angered by the [[Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy]]. TIPH came back to Hebron a few months later.
== Demographics ==
<!-- this needs expansion to earlier times. -->
{| class="wikitable"
!Year
!Muslims
!Christians
!Jews
!Total
!Notes
|-
! 1538
| 749 h
| 7 h
| 20 h
| 776 h
| (h = households) Source: Cohen & Lewis
|-
! 1817
|
|
| 500
|
|<ref name=JVL>{{cite web |url=http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/hebron.html |title=Hebron |work=Jewish Virtual Library}}</ref>
|-
!1838
|
|
| 700
|
|<ref name=JVL/>
|-
! 1837
|
|
| 423
|
| Montefiore census
|-
! 1866
|
|
| 497
|
| Montefiore census
|-
! 1922
| 16,074
| 73
| 430
| 16,577
| British Mandate Census
|-
!1929
|
|
|700
|
|<ref name=JVL/>
|-
!1930
|
|
|0
|
|<ref name=JVL/>
|-
! 1931
| 17,275
| 112
| 135
| 17,522
| British Mandate Census
|-
! 1944
| 24,400
| 150
| 0
| 24,550
| Estimate
|-
! 1967
| 38,203
| 106
| 0
| 38,309
| <!-- Israeli(?) --> Census
|-
! 1997
| 130,000
| 3
| 530
| 130,533
|<ref name=JVL/>
<!-- FIXME [http://www.pcbs.org/phc_97/tab_e.aspx Palestinian Census] -->
|}
=== Jewish settlement after 1967 ===
[[Image:HebronStar.jpg|thumb|200px|right|[[Star of David]] carved above entrance to a now Arab home in the old city of Hebron.<ref name=cpt1> Christian Peacemaking Teams. [http://www.cpt.org/archives/2004/jul04/0032.html HEBRON UPDATE: July 11-16, 2004], 2004-7-26.</ref><ref name=cpt2> Christian Peacemaking Teams. [http://www.cpt.org/archives/2004/sep04/0000.html HEBRON UPDATE: August 17-23, 2004], 2004-9-1.</ref>]]
Following the [[Six-Day War]] of 1967, Israel's position was parts of the [[West Bank]] be [[land for peace|traded for peace]] with Jordan.<ref>[[Chaim Herzog]] ''Heroes of Israel'' p.253.</ref>
In an interview with the ''[[BBC]]'' on July 12 of that year, Former Israeli Prime Minister [[David Ben-Gurion]] declared that, in the cause of peace, Israel should take nothing in the conquered territories, with the exception of Hebron, which 'is more Jewish even than Jerusalem'. According to Randolph Churchill, he argued that "Jerusalem became Jewish three thousand years ago under King David but Hebron became Jewish four thousand years ago under Abraham and included a number of settlements that were destroyed two days before Israel was established."<ref>Randolph Churchill, Winston S.Churchill, ''The Six Day War,''1967 p.199 citing 'The World at One' BBC radio, July 12,1967</ref>
In 1968, a group of Jews led by Rabbi [[Moshe Levinger]] rented out the main hotel in Hebron, and then refused to leave. According to the American Jewish historian [[Ian Lustik]]:
<blockquote>
The government was caught by surprise. Internally divided, depending for its survival on the votes of the [[National Religious Party]], and reluctant to forcibly evacuate the settlers from a city whose Jewish population had been massacred thirty-nine years earlier, the [[Israeli legislative election, 1965|Labor government]] backed away from its original prohibition against civilian settlement in the area and permitted this group to remain within a military compound. After more than a year and a half of agitation and a bloody Arab attack on the Hebron settlers, the government agreed to allow Levinger's group to establish a town on the outskirts of the city.
</blockquote>
They moved to a nearby abandoned army camp and established the settlement of [[Kiryat Arba]]. In 1979, Levinger's wife led 30 Jewish women to take over the former [[Hadassah Hospital]], Daboya Hospital, now Beit Hadassah in central Hebron, founding the [[Committee of The Jewish Community of Hebron]]. Before long this received Israeli government approval and a further three Jewish enclaves in the city were established with army assistance,{{Fact|date=April 2007}} and settlers are currently reported to be trying to purchase more homes in the city.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1176152784857&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull|title=Hebron settlers try to buy more homes|author=Yaakov Katz and Tovah Lazaroff|publisher=''[[The Jerusalem Post]]''|date=[[April 14]], [[2007]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1176152794781&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull|title=Hebron settlers give up comfort to expand Jewish holdings|author=Tovah Lazaroff|publisher=''[[The Jerusalem Post]]''|date=[[April 15]], [[2007]]}}</ref>
Jews living in these settlements and their supporters claim that they are resettling areas where Jews have lived since time immemorial. However, some reports, both foreign and Israeli are sharply critical of the settlers.<ref name=BG>''[[Boston Globe]]''. [http://www.globalexchange.org/countries/palestine/293.html A top Israeli Says Settlers Incited Riot In Hebron] 2002-7-31. (was [http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/212/nation/A_top_Israeli_says_settlers_incited_riot_in_Hebron.shtml here])</ref><ref name=sct>''[[The Scotsman]]''. "[http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/international.cfm?id=820752002 Settlers’ revenge leaves Hebron bleeding]", 2002-7-30.</ref>
The sentiments of Jews who fled the [[1929 Hebron massacre]] and their descendants are mixed. Some advocate the continued settlement of Hebron as a way to continue the Jewish heritage in the city, while others suggest that settlers should try to live in peace with the Arabs there, with some even recommending the complete pullout of all settlers in Hebron.<ref name=jpt>''[[The Jerusalem Post]]''. "[http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?apage=1&cid=1145961357122&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull Field News 10/2/2002 Hebron Jews' offspring divided over city's fate]", 2006-05-16.</ref> Descendants supporting the latter views have met with Palestinian leaders in Hebron.<ref name=agf>''[[The Philadelphia Inquirer]]''. "[http://www.angelfire.com/il/FourMothers/Yona.html Hebron descendants decry actions of current settlers They are kin of the Jews ousted in 1929]", 1997-03-03.</ref> The two most public examples of the descendants' views are the 1997 statement made by an association of some descendants dissociating themselves from the then-current Jewish settlers in Hebron and calling them an obstacle to peace,<ref name=agf/> and the [[May 15]], [[2006]] letter sent to the Israeli government by other descendants urging the government to continue its support of Jewish settlement in Hebron in their names, and urged it to allow the return of eight Jewish families evacuated the previous January from the homes they set up in empty shops near the Avraham Avinu neighborhood.<ref name=jpt/> [[Beit HaShalom]], was established in 2007. [http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/907606.html] [http://www.hebron.com/english/article.php?id=313] [http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?c=JPArticle&cid=1176152784857&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull] One of the purchasers is a descendant of Jews who fled Hebron during Arab massacres.<ref name=shragai>{{Cite news
|last = Shragai
|first = Nadav
|title = 80 years on, massacre victims' kin reclaims Hebron house
|work = Haaretz
|accessdate = 2008-02-07
|date = 2007-12-26
|url = http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/938599.html
}}</ref>
A total of 86 Jewish families now live in Hebron.[http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/624279/jewish/A-Visit-to-Hebron.htm]
[[Image:Image21a.jpg|thumb|A military checkpoint in Hebron. Picture from documentary [[Welcome to Hebron]]]]
The Israeli [[NGO]] [[Breaking The Silence]], composed mostly of former soldiers, has documented abuses committed by [[Israel Defense Forces|Israeli soldiers]] guarding the Hebron settlers,<ref>[http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/our-reign-of-terror-by-the-israeli-army-811769.html Our reign of terror, by the Israeli army] Donald Macintyre, 19 April 2008, [[The Independent]]</ref> while [[Mario Vargas Llosa]] has written about how local Arabs are "subjected [] to systematic and ferocious harassment by settlers, who stone them, throw rubbish and excrement at their houses, invade and destroy their homes, and attack their children when they return from school, to the absolute indifference of Israeli soldiers who witness these atrocities."<ref>[http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/mario-vargas-llosa-how-arabs-have-been-driven-out-of-hebron-811770.html Mario Vargas Llosa: How Arabs have been driven out of Hebron] 19 April 2008, [[The Independent]]</ref>
The documentary [[Welcome to Hebron]] showed how violent settlers harass the local Palestinian population. <ref>http://www.stockholmfilmfestival.se/en/shop/films/information/?films[film]=vaelkommen_till_hebron [[Stockholm International Film Festival]]</ref> In the film, a former commander of the Israeli army, one of the leading figures in Breaking The Silence, shared his experiences as a soldier in Hebron.
== Cultural, historical and sporting landmarks ==
Adjacent to the municipality building, the Hebron archaeological museum has a collection of artifacts from the Canaanite to the Islamic periods. The Oak Of [[Abraham]], also called Oak of Mamre, is an ancient oak tree which marks the place where, according to tradition, Abraham pitched his tent. It is estimated that this oak is approximately 5,000 years old. The Russian Orthodox Church owns the site and the nearby monastery. Other notable sites are The Well of Abraham and the tombs of [[Abner|Abner ben Ner]] (the commander of [[Saul]] and [[David]]'s army), [[Book of Ruth|Ruth]] and [[Jesse]].
==Languages and accents==
{{Unreferenced|date=November 2007}}
Palestinian Hebronites are known amongst the Levant for their distinguished colloquial Arabic accent. Hebronites speak while stretching their words giving it a long musical sound.
== Notable people relating to Hebron ==
<!--alphabetical order-->
{{MultiCol}}
* [[Abraham]], biblical patriarch who settled in Hebron
* [[Malkiel Ashkenazi]], leader of Sephardic Jewish Community of Hebron, 16th century
* [[Abraham Azulai]] (c.1570-1643) rabbi, [[Kabbalistic]] author and commentator, buried in Hebron's ancient Jewish cemetery.
* [[King David]]
* [[Eliyahu de Vidas]], Medieval [[Kabbalah|Kabbalist]]
* [[Noam Federman]]
* [[Baruch Goldstein]], mass murderer
* [[Hasan Hourani]], artist
* [[Sulaiman Ja'abari]], mufti
* Rabbi [[Moshe Levinger]]
* Rabbi [[Dov Lior]], rabbi of [[Kiryat Arba]]
* [[Nafez Assaily]] Peace activist
* [[Shalhevet Pass]], terrorist attack victim
* [[Avraham Shmulevich]] ("Bead Artseinu"), Activist, Politician
* [[David Wilder (Hebron Spokesman)|David Wilder]]
{{EndMultiCol}}
== See also ==
{{commonscat|Hebron}}
* [[Hebron glass]]
* [[LMLK seal]]s (oldest inscription naming the city dates to 700 BCE if HBRN=Hebron)
* [[Israeli-Palestinian conflict]]
* [[Temporary International Presence in Hebron]]
* [[Slabodka yeshiva|Hebron Yeshiva]]
* [[Riots in Palestine of 1929]]
* [[al-Aqsa Intifada]]
* [[Palestinian Child Arts Center]]
* [[List of burial places of biblical figures]]
==References==
{{reflist|2}}
== External links ==
* [http://www.pbase.com/rdavid/hebron Photographs of Hebron]
* [http://www.hebron.com/english Hebron.com - English]
* [http://www.thisweekinpalestine.com/ Collection of Palestinian articles on Hebron published by ''"This Week in Palestine"''.]
{{Cities in the West Bank}}
{{Judea and Samaria}}
{{Hebron Governorate}}
{{Holy sites in Judaism}}
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[[Category:Canaanite cities]]
[[Category:Cities in the West Bank]]
[[Category:Aga Khan Award for Architecture winners]]
[[Category:Villages depopulated prior to the 1948 Arab-Israeli war]]
[[Category:Holy cities]]
[[Category:Hebrew Bible cities]]
[[Category:Torah cities]]
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