Categories - Beit Jala Municipality | بلدية بيت جالا

Welcome to Beit Jala

2018-08-02T06:42:19+00:00

Beit Jala, Palestine, lies only two kilometers from the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus Christ. Its name comes from Aramaic, the language of Jesus Christ, and means "grass carpet". The city is considered to be one of oldest in Palestine, and its' first municipal council was established in 1912.

Beit Jala is the home for about 15,670 people of Palestinian Christians and Muslims living together in harmony, respect and cooperation as a great example of coexistence between religions. Many of its citizens were forced to flee during the past century due to poverty and armed conflict in the area. The estimated number of the expatriates and their ancestors of Beit Jala living in Chile, Central and South America in addition to the United States is approximately 100,000 people.

Beit Jala is famous for its religious, educational and health organizations that serve the citizens of the city, the neighboring cities of Bethlehem, Beit Sahour and all nearby villages and refugee camps. In addition, there are several organizations for children, women and youth care, not to forget to mention the several resorts and tourist sites in the city that represent one of the most significant means of businesses for the city.

Beit Jala City consists of five neighborhoods; each of which includes several families as follows:

As Sama'na Neighborhood, which includes three families: As Sama'na, Al Hseinat and Atha'albah.
As Sarar Neighborhoodwhich includes ten families: Ash Shamamsa, Al 'Ararfa, Ar Rzooz, Al Khuwara, Ath Throuf, Al Jirban, Al mutasaribon, Al Khirfan, Ad Daqamqa, and Al Qatatna.
Al Iraq Neighborhood, which includes three families: An Nawawiya, Al Ghawali and Hseinat Al Iraq.
Ad Deir Neighborhood, which includes five families: Al 'Asatna, Al Ghneimat, Al Habahba, Al Mafadwa and Al Marawna.
Al Knees Neighborhood, which includes four families: Al Jweijat, Ash Shamara, An Naqawla and Al Qasasfa.

The population of Beit Jala City

The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) shows that the total population of Beit Jala in 2007 was (13,845) whom 6,859 are males and 6,986 are females. There are 3,093 households living in 3,917 housing units. (excluding the areas of Beir Una and khalet Hamameh)

According to the statistics of 2012 the total population of Beit Jala city is (15,670) including the areas of Beir una with a total population of (761) and Khalet Hamameh area with a total population of (1601).

Age Groups and Gender

The distribution of age groups in Beit Jala according to the PCBS in 2007 is as follows:
31 percent are less than 15years, 59.3 percent are between 15 - 64 years, 6.1 percent are 65 years and older, and 3.6percent are unknown. Data also showed that the sex ratio of males to females in the city is 98.2:100, meaning that males constitute 49.5 percent of the population, and females constitute 50.5 percent of the population.

History & Culture

2018-08-02T07:07:40+00:00

Situated on a hill adjacent to Bethlehem, the city of Beit Jala has existed for thousands of years, and its Christian community is one of the oldest in the world. The name ‘Beit Jala’ comes from Aramaic and means, “Grass Carpet”. Anthropological evidence shows that humans have lived in the Bethlehem area since pre-historical times, even as far back as the Stone Age 200,000 years ago. Little is known about the first permanent dwellings in Beit Jala, but it is likely that the Canaanites settled there about the same time as in neighboring Bethlehem, around 3,000 BC. Beit Jala is thought to be one of several possible locations of the biblical city of Gilo, mentioned in Joshua 15:51 and II Samuel 15:12.

The oldest remaining ruins of a substantial community date to the early Christian period of the 3rd-4th century AD, when monks such as St. Nicolas began to come to the area to be close to the site of Jesus’ birth. The large hill on which Beit Jala is located was a good place to build a monastery, being close to the Nativity site but outside the town of Bethlehem itself. With the help of the few locals who were already living in Beit Jala they built St. Nicolas Monastery, the ruins of which can still be seen beneath St. Nicolas’s Church, as well the very cave in which Nicolas is thought to have lived. With the building of the monastery, the growth of the town accelerated around it and Beit Jala has been continually inhabited by Christians ever since.

The monastery building itself was destroyed and rebuilt several times as Beit Jala weathered many disruptive changes in rule, and the people of Beit Jala experienced several periods or civil strife or persecution. In 529 AD Bethlehem and Beit Jala were sacked during the revolt of Samaritans under Julianus ben Sabar. In 637 the Caliph Umar the Great conquered the entire region, including Jerusalem, but spared Christian and Jewish communities. In 1099 the newly arrived Crusaders replaced the Greek Orthodox Clergy with a Catholic one, but they were expelled by Saladin in 1187.

In 1516 the Ottomans conquered Palestine, and began four centuries of rule over the area. At the height of Ottoman power in the 16th and 17th centuries, Palestinians enjoyed a secure and prosperous life. As the Empire began to stagnate and collapse, however, life under their rule became very difficult. The empire levied huge taxes on the population, and forced conscription upon the population in order to supply troops to the Army. In 1831 Mohammed Ali of Egypt conquered the region and remained in control of it until 1840, when the Turks regained control with help from the British and Austrians. As a result of these social upheavals, large numbers of Palestinians, and particularly from Beit Jala, Bethlehem, Beit Sahour, and Beit Safafa, left the country for South America during the 19th and early 20th century. To this day Chili and Argentina are home to as many as 400,000 Palestinians living in Diaspora, almost all of them from the Bethlehem area.

In return for their help in defeating Mohammed Ali, the Ottomans allowed European churches and organizations to enter Palestine. British Anglicans, Prussian Lutherans, French Catholics, and Russian Orthodox clergy began to establish churches, schools, and hospitals in the Holy Land. The biblical heritage of the Bethlehem area attracted particular attention from the missionaries, and they began to found some of the region’s first modern schools and churches in Beit Jala. Between 1848 and 1900, Beit Jala witnessed the building of two Orthodox churches (St. Nicolas’ and St Mary’s), two Catholic churches (The Church if the Annunciation and Bishara church of the Latin Convent), one Lutheran church (Church of the Reformation), Palestine’s premier Seminary and at the time its most modern school (The Latin Patriarchate), and the Cremisan monastery. At the time, this gave Beit Jala access to the most advanced educational institutions in the country, and contributed towards making Beit Jala one of the first cities to become incorporated as a municipality in all of Palestine in 1912.

After the Ottoman Empire Finally collapsed in 1917, The British ruled Palestine as a Mandate until 1948. Under the mandate, all of Palestine went through significant steps towards modernization with efforts in public health and ending malnutrition, and the building of telegraph and railway communication systems. The British, however, were reluctant to allow local Arab leaders to participate in government, and denied the population representative government. Meanwhile, large numbers of Zionist immigrants continued to settle on the coast, and showed increasing influence on the British administration. Between the world wars, the Jewish population of Palestine increased from one-sixth the total population to one third. Tensions between Jews and Arabs began to rise as the creation of a Jewish State in a majority Arab land became increasing likely. Riots broke out across Palestine, and from 1936-1939 the British lost control of large parts of the country during the ‘Great Arab Revolt.’ In 1947 the British handed the issue to the United Nations, which resolved to partition Palestine into two states. The day before the British Mandate expired on May 15th 1948, Israel declared independence. Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Jordan and Egypt immediately invaded, and the Palestinian nakba began.

With Israel’s victory in the 1948 war, Beit Jala and Bethlehem came under Jordanian military occupation. The demographics of Beit Jala changed dramatically as a result of the nakba, and again after the 1967 six day war, when the city was flooded with refugees fleeing Israeli troops. Beit Jala took in a significant Muslim minority, and two mosques, the Beit Jala Mosque and the Imam Ahmen bin Hanbol Mosque, were founded.

Following the 1967 war in Israel occupied the West Bank; Israel annexed 3,147 dunums, or 22% of Beit Jala’s land, to form the new borders of Jerusalem. In 1971, Beit Jala had another 3,527 dunums of land (24%) confiscated to form the settlements of Gilo and Har Gilo. These confiscations, combined with the general oppressiveness of the occupation, contributed to the outbreak of the 1st Intifada in 1987.

During the second Intifada, Beit Jala’s high elevation and panoramic views of the area made it an advantageous position from which fighters could fire on the nearby settlements. During Israel’s ‘Operation Defensive Shield’ the fighters retreated into Bethlehem’s church of the Nativity, which Israeli troops laid siege to for five weeks.

Beit Jala is currently home to about 15,670 citizens, the majority of whom are Christian and the rest predominantly Muslim.

Location & Climate

2018-08-02T07:09:02+00:00

Beit Jala City lies only two kilometers from the Church of the Nativity and is considered as a twinning to Bethlehem City and a natural expansion from the west especially in the sectors of Tourism, Education and health.

Beit Jala is located at an altitude of 710m-920m above the sea level, thus its climate is considered as a moderate as its average annual temperature is 17˚ C. and the average annual rainfall is 550 mm. Therefore, Beit Jala is considered one of the most beautiful summer resorts.

Beit Jala City lies only 7 km to the west south of Jerusalem and it's bordered by Beit Safafa and Sharafat village to the North, Bethlehem city to the east, Addoha city and Al-Khader village to the south, Al-Walajah and Battir to the west.

The city itself occupies some 14,000 dunums (3500 acres), much of which is occupied by fertile farmland planted primarily with traditional Palestinian crops growing in the Mediterranean climate– olive trees dating back hundreds of years, grapes, apricots, apples, and plums. Each year, Beit Jala receives just under 700mm of rain, almost all coming during a short winter, from late November too early March. During these months temperatures can become fairly chilly and rainy, with rare flurries of snow and freezing temperatures. Because of this, those visiting Beit Jala during the winter are advised to bring warmer sets of clothes for the evenings, and something to keep them dry. The summer, in contrast, is long, hot, and dry, receiving virtually no rain, with temperatures as high as 39 degrees Celsius during midday. Summer evenings, however, are pleasantly cool and breezy and might sometimes require a light sweater. During the months of April, May and June the region is affected by the hot, dry, and dusty Khamaseen winds which blow in from the Arabian Desert. Average temperatures range from 9-18° C in winter to 26- 30° C in summer. Night dew occurs and average of 180 nights out of the year.

Demographics & Economy

2018-08-02T07:15:33+00:00

There are 465 licensed economic constructions in Beit Jala distributed as follows:

Sector	Number
Crafts and industrial constructions	182
Touristic constructions	8
Services	59
Trade constructions	207
Constructional factories	9
Total	465

The total number of Beit Jala citizens is (15,670) inhabitants and the total number of labors is (4000) distributed as follows:

Sources of income:

The source of income of Beit Jala citizens varies according to its economic activities and distributed as follows:

Public sector ,
Private sector,
Civil societies,
External Employment
Income of the tourism, industrial, commercial sectors
Transfers from the expatriates.

Commercial Sector:

In the past, the commercial sector was not active in Beit Jala as most of its citizens were originally farmers and craftsmen as well as the lack of funds and the trend of investors to invest outside the city.

But In the last few years, the commercial sector started to obviously be revived especially at the entrance of the city (Bab Zqaq) area (Main Street).

Its worth mentioning that the existence of a large number of governmental and private schools in addition to Al-Quds Open University as well as the existence of the main medical centers such as Beit Jala Governmental Hospital, Bethlehem Arab Society for Rehabilitation, Beit Jala Pharmaceutical Company, in addition to a large number of governmental and private societies contributed very well in activating the commercial and investment activities in the city.

Handicrafts and industrial sector:

The Bethlehem area, is specialized and well known for handicraft industries. Production includes a wide range of handmade articles made of olive wood, and mother of pearl. Most of these products are manufactured locally in small workshops using labor intensive techniques. Intricate and colorful hand embroidered Palestinian traditional costumes are produced in a number of Bethlehem district villages. Despite potential demand for Palestinian handicraft products in regional and foreign markets, exports remain minimal. This is due to the lack of adequate supportive incentives, especially with regard to credit promotion, and technical know-how. There is another major problem concerning, the quality of industrial products today: very few producers have trademarks on their products; many are not licensed and work at home, selling to certain souvenir shops at very cheap prices.

Banks & services:

The banks' movement is new in Beit Jala city as there are only 3 banks in the city. The city also has a public park, restaurants, hotels, fairly advanced medical services such as Beit Jala Governmental Hospital, Bethlehem Arab Society for Rehabilitation, Beit Jala Pharmaceutical Company, Beit Jala Medical center as well as other different civil societies.

Agriculture

Beit Jala lies on a total area of about (9,749) dunums of which (7,305) dunums are considered arable land, and (913) dunums are residential land. Agriculture production in Beit Jala depends mostly on rainwater, as for irrigated fields, they depend on domestic harvesting cisterns.

total area of rain fed and irrigated open cultivated vegetables in Beit Jala City (dunum)
Fruity vegetables		Leafy Vegetables		Green legumes		bulbs		other vegetables		total area
rf	irr.	rf	irr.	rf	irr.	rf	irr.	rf	irr.	rf	irr.
21	21.5	0	6.5	0	1.5	0	0.5	0	6	21	36

RF: RAIN FED, IRR: IRRIGATED
SOURCE: PALESTINIAN MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE

total area of fruit and olive trees in Beit Jala (dunum)

olives

citrus

stone-fruits

pome fruits

nuts

other fruits

total area

irr.

3,020

605

221

261

4,107

RF: RAIN FED, IRR: IRRIGATED
SOURCE: PALESTINIAN MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE