'Atara
Encyclopedia
Atara is a Palestinian
village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate
, located 15 kilometers north of Ramallah
in the central West Bank
. A village of nearly 2,300 inhabitants, it is situated along a mountain ridge line with four peaks and is built upon the second highest point in the West Bank at 810 meters above sea level.
Nearby localities include Jifna
to the south, Bir Zeit
to the southwest, Kobar
to the west, Ajjul
to the northwest, Abwein
to the north, Sinjil
to the northeast and al-Mazra'a ash-Sharqiya
to the east. 'Atara's total land area consists of 9,545 dunam
s, most of which is cultivable.
identified 'Atara with the Biblical Ataroth
mentioned in the Book of Joshua
.
In 1596, Atara appeared in Ottoman
tax registers as being in the Nahiya of Quds of the Liwa
of Quds. It had a population of 55 Muslim households and paid taxes on wheat, barley, olives, vines or fruit trees, and goats or beehives.
In the 17th-19th centuries, 'Atara was located in the nahiya of Bani Zeid
. Adult males were required to pay 58-60 akçe
to the Ottoman government in Jerusalem.
In 1922, the Jewish National Fund
established a moshav
on 500 dunams of land. Known as Ataroth, it was one of the first Zionist hill settlements. The original settlers were from Eastern Europe
, and in 1947 numbered 200. During the 1936-1939 Arab disturbances, this moshav took heavy losses. Part of its land area was requisitioned by the British Army
in order to build an air field. The moshav was depopulated on May 15, 1948. The group later resettled in Wilhelma, Palestine
.
In 2002, 95-year-old Atara resident Fatima Hassan became the oldest Palestinian fatality in the Second Intifada when the taxi she was in was shot at by Israeli soldiers. Witnesses said the car was waiting in a long line of cars and soldiers smashed the windows before firing. A military source said soldiers fired at the taxi after it ignored orders to halt on a prohibited road.
encases the Sanctuary of I'mar. There used to stand a Byzantine
church.
On the Dahrat Hamoud hill about 1.5km south-west of 'Atara, standing at about 820 meters above sea level, lays the Sanctuary of Sheikh al-Qatrawani. The shrine is one of a series of watchtowers overlooking the coast built by the Mamluk
s in the 16th century. The sanctuary, built atop the ruins of an ancient Byzantine
monastery, is visited by Palestinian Muslim
s to offer vows and Christian
s to rest in or near. The present sanctuary is made up of the shrine, the remains of the monastery, a cave and a cistern.
According to local Islamic tradition, the sanctuary was named after a holy man named Sheikh Ahmad al-Qatrawani from the destroyed village of Qatra
north of Gaza
. Popular belief suggests that al-Qatrawani left his home town of Qatra due to his inability to fulfill his religious duties there, thus relocating to the deserted hill of Dar Hamouda where he "lived in prayer and self mortification". Another popular tale claims when al-Qatrawani died, his dead body descended onto the hilltop where his sanctuary stands.
According to local legend from the town of Bir Zeit
, nearby villagers found a Sufi derwish laying on the site and when asked of his origins, he said he was from Qatra and that angels brought him to the site where he would die. The residents of 'Atara, as well as nearby Ajjul
and Silwad
provided him with food and protection for four years and when they found him dead, they buried him just west of the sanctuary.
Many Palestinian Christian
s argue, however, that the site was dedicated to Saint Catherine
, suggesting the etymological origin of "Qatrawani" to be from "Catherine". Hamdan Taha points out similarities between the Muslim tradition of al-Qatrawani descending to his burial place at the time of his death to the Christian tradition of Saint Catherine descending to Mount Sinai
at the time of her death.
The modern building is a renovated version of the original building built in the late Mamluk era in the 16th century. The renovation took place in 1999 undertaken by the Palestinian Department of Antiquities. The sanctuary is a rectangular building 9.8 meters in width, and 5.9 meters in length. It has two semi-spherical domes, measuring 3.8 and 3.9 meters in diameter respectively. The eastern dome is built of finely cut stones, while the western dome is built of small rough field-stones, but both kinds are of local origin. The northern wall is 85 centimeters thick and is constructed of small stones, mortar and rubble. The eastern room of the sanctuary contains a mihrab
("prayer niche") with the typical orientation to Mecca
as required in Islam
ic doctrine.
The cistern
, currently blocked, is in front of the shrine and most likely collected rainwater in the past for the sanctuary. It possibly also drew water from the nearby spring of Wadi as-Saqi, located two kilometers south of the site. To the west of the Sheikh al-Qatrawani sanctuary is a winepress cut through stone. Its basin is 1.8 meters deep and is coated with a layer of white plaster. A stone-cut cave is located in front of the shrine, but was blocked in 1984 by the residents of 'Atara for "safety reasons". In front of the building is a courtyard and the actual tomb of Sheikh al-Qatrawnani is located adjacently west of the site and has been plundered a number of times.
, Atara had a population of 407 Muslims. By the 1931 census
, this had risen to 559 Muslims in 133 occupied houses. The British population survey of 1945 found a population of 690.
Emigration surged between 1952 and 1955 to the Gulf Arab states
, due to poor economic conditions in the West Bank
. Several others moved to Ramallah and Jerusalem for work. By 1961, the population was 1,110, however, it decreased tremendously after the 1967 Six-Day War
, in which Israel
captured and occupied the West Bank
from Jordan
. The village population slowly grew to 903 in 1982, then 976 in 1987.
In the first census taken by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics
(PCBS) in 1997, 'Atara's population reached 1,661, of which 92 were Palestinian refugee
s (5.6%). The gender make-up was 50.2% male and 49.8% female. According to a PCBS estimate, 'Atara had a population of approximately 2,400 inhabitants in mid-year 2006. In the PCBS census in 2007, 'Atara had a population of 2,270, of which 1,139 were males and 1,131 females. There 495 housing units and the average household size consisted of 5.5 family members.
. As a result, agricultural production has been further reduced and a substantial portion of 'Atara's economy became dependent residents working abroad. Transportation is an issue in the village, with only one road being able to access through Bir Zeit.
Eggs are a primary agricultural product and there are eleven egg farms in the village. Olives are also widely produced and are delivered to an oil pressing factory in the town of 'Arura, where olive oil is produced. Israeli checkpoints around 'Atara, as well as the harvest of 'Atara's olive crop by Israeli settlers from Ateret
has effectively strained the village's economy.
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate
Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate
The Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate is one of 16 Governorates of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. It covers a large part of the central West Bank, on the northern border of the Jerusalem Governorate. Its district capital or muhfaza is the city of al-Bireh.According to the Palestinian Central...
, located 15 kilometers north of Ramallah
Ramallah
Ramallah is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank located 10 kilometers north of Jerusalem, adjacent to al-Bireh. It currently serves as the de facto administrative capital of the Palestinian National Authority...
in the central West Bank
West Bank
The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
. A village of nearly 2,300 inhabitants, it is situated along a mountain ridge line with four peaks and is built upon the second highest point in the West Bank at 810 meters above sea level.
Nearby localities include Jifna
Jifna
Jifna is a Palestinian village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate in the central West Bank, Palestinian Territories, located north of Ramallah and north of Jerusalem. A village of about 1,400 people, Jifna has retained a Christian majority since the 6th century CE...
to the south, Bir Zeit
Bir Zeit
Birzeit is a Palestinian town near Ramallah in the central West Bank. Its population in the 2007 census was 4529...
to the southwest, Kobar
Kobar
Kobar is a Palestinian village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate in the northern West Bank, located northwest of Ramallah. The village is situated on a hill at an altitude of 640 meters above sea level and is along Highway 37. Its built-up area consists of about 1,300 dunams and a total...
to the west, Ajjul
Ajjul
Ajjul is a Palestinian village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate in the northern West Bank, located about nineteen kilometers north of Ramallah. There are two archaeological sites or khirbets to the east of the village. One of the khirbets is dedicated to a former resident of Ajjul, Sheikh...
to the northwest, Abwein
Abwein
Abwein is a Palestinian village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate, located about 37 kilometers north of Ramallah in the northern West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, Abwein had a population of 6,000 inhabitants in 2007. Most of Abwein's population are...
to the north, Sinjil
Sinjil
Sinjil is a Palestinian town located northeast of Ramallah in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate in the central West Bank. The village is surrounded by the village of Turmus Ayya and the Israeli settlement of Shilo....
to the northeast and al-Mazra'a ash-Sharqiya
Al-Mazra'a ash-Sharqiya
al-Mazra'a ash-Sharqiya is a Palestinian town in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate, located 15 kilometers Northeast of Ramallah in the northern West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics , the town had a population of approximately 4,495 inhabitants in 2007....
to the east. 'Atara's total land area consists of 9,545 dunam
Dunam
A dunam or dönüm, dunum, donum, dynym, dulum was a non-SI unit of land area used in the Ottoman Empire and representing the amount of land that can be plowed in a day; its value varied from 900–2500 m²...
s, most of which is cultivable.
History
Edward RobinsonEdward Robinson (scholar)
Edward Robinson was an American biblical scholar, known as the “Father of Biblical Geography.” He has been referred to as the “founder of modern Palestinology.” -Biography:...
identified 'Atara with the Biblical Ataroth
Ataroth
Ataroth means "crowns" in Hebrew.The Mesha Stele from about 840 BC was erected commemorating Mesha's victory over the "son" of Omri, but he fails to say which one. He states that he massacred all the Israelites at Ataroth as satisfaction for the blood lust of Chemosh and Moab...
mentioned in the Book of Joshua
Book of Joshua
The Book of Joshua is the sixth book in the Hebrew Bible and of the Old Testament. Its 24 chapters tell of the entry of the Israelites into Canaan, their conquest and division of the land under the leadership of Joshua, and of serving God in the land....
.
In 1596, Atara appeared in Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
tax registers as being in the Nahiya of Quds of the Liwa
Liwa (arabic)
Liwa or Liwa is an Arabic term meaning district, banner, or flag, a type of administrative division. It was interchangeable with the Turkish term "Sanjak" in the time of the Ottoman Empire. After the fall of the empire, the term was used in the Arab countries formerly under Ottoman rule...
of Quds. It had a population of 55 Muslim households and paid taxes on wheat, barley, olives, vines or fruit trees, and goats or beehives.
In the 17th-19th centuries, 'Atara was located in the nahiya of Bani Zeid
Bani Zeid
Bani Zeid is a Palestinian town in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate, located northwest of Ramallah in the north-central West Bank and about south-west of Salfit. A town of 5,515 inhabitants, Bani Zeid was created as a merger between the villages of Deir Ghassaneh and Beit Rima...
. Adult males were required to pay 58-60 akçe
Akçe
thumb|250px|AkçeA silver coin, the akçe was the chief monetary unit of the Ottoman Empire. The word "akçe" is derived from the Greek "" , the name of a Byzantine silver or billon coin, current in the region that eventually became the Ottoman Empire. The akçe is hence often called asper in English...
to the Ottoman government in Jerusalem.
In 1922, the Jewish National Fund
Jewish National Fund
The Jewish National Fund was founded in 1901 to buy and develop land in Ottoman Palestine for Jewish settlement. The JNF is a quasi-governmental, non-profit organisation...
established a moshav
Moshav
Moshav is a type of Israeli town or settlement, in particular a type of cooperative agricultural community of individual farms pioneered by the Labour Zionists during the second aliyah...
on 500 dunams of land. Known as Ataroth, it was one of the first Zionist hill settlements. The original settlers were from Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
, and in 1947 numbered 200. During the 1936-1939 Arab disturbances, this moshav took heavy losses. Part of its land area was requisitioned by the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
in order to build an air field. The moshav was depopulated on May 15, 1948. The group later resettled in Wilhelma, Palestine
Bnei Atarot
Bnei Atarot is a moshav in central Israel. Located near Yehud, around 15 kilometres east of Tel Aviv, it is situated in fertile plain at the eastern rim of Tel Aviv metropolitan area next to Ben Gurion Airport and falls under the jurisdiction of Hevel Modi'in Regional Council...
.
In 2002, 95-year-old Atara resident Fatima Hassan became the oldest Palestinian fatality in the Second Intifada when the taxi she was in was shot at by Israeli soldiers. Witnesses said the car was waiting in a long line of cars and soldiers smashed the windows before firing. A military source said soldiers fired at the taxi after it ignored orders to halt on a prohibited road.
Sanctuaries
'Atara contains two sanctuaries for saintly figures. The village's old mosqueMosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
encases the Sanctuary of I'mar. There used to stand a Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
church.
Sanctuary of Sheikh al-Qatrawani
Mamluk
A Mamluk was a soldier of slave origin, who were predominantly Cumans/Kipchaks The "mamluk phenomenon", as David Ayalon dubbed the creation of the specific warrior...
s in the 16th century. The sanctuary, built atop the ruins of an ancient Byzantine
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
monastery, is visited by Palestinian Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s to offer vows and Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
s to rest in or near. The present sanctuary is made up of the shrine, the remains of the monastery, a cave and a cistern.
According to local Islamic tradition, the sanctuary was named after a holy man named Sheikh Ahmad al-Qatrawani from the destroyed village of Qatra
Qatra
Qatra was a Palestinian Arab village located southwest of the city of Ramla and west of Jerusalem, some above sea level.- History :Qatra was a Canaanite center of political and economic authority that along with 30 other urban sites in regions bordering the Mediterranean sea, entered a period...
north of Gaza
Gaza
Gaza , also referred to as Gaza City, is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, with a population of about 450,000, making it the largest city in the Palestinian territories.Inhabited since at least the 15th century BC,...
. Popular belief suggests that al-Qatrawani left his home town of Qatra due to his inability to fulfill his religious duties there, thus relocating to the deserted hill of Dar Hamouda where he "lived in prayer and self mortification". Another popular tale claims when al-Qatrawani died, his dead body descended onto the hilltop where his sanctuary stands.
According to local legend from the town of Bir Zeit
Bir Zeit
Birzeit is a Palestinian town near Ramallah in the central West Bank. Its population in the 2007 census was 4529...
, nearby villagers found a Sufi derwish laying on the site and when asked of his origins, he said he was from Qatra and that angels brought him to the site where he would die. The residents of 'Atara, as well as nearby Ajjul
Ajjul
Ajjul is a Palestinian village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate in the northern West Bank, located about nineteen kilometers north of Ramallah. There are two archaeological sites or khirbets to the east of the village. One of the khirbets is dedicated to a former resident of Ajjul, Sheikh...
and Silwad
Silwad
Silwad is a Palestinian town located 12 kilometers north-east of Ramallah, about 5 km away from the Nablus-Jerusalem highway. Silwad altitude is 860 Meter above sea level. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics , the town had a population of 6,123 inhabitants in...
provided him with food and protection for four years and when they found him dead, they buried him just west of the sanctuary.
Many Palestinian Christian
Palestinian Christian
Palestinian Christians are Arabic-speaking Christians descended from the people of the geographical area of Palestine. Within Palestine, there are churches and believers from many Christian denominations, including Oriental Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodoxy, Catholic , Protestant, and others...
s argue, however, that the site was dedicated to Saint Catherine
Catherine of Alexandria
Saint Catherine of Alexandria, also known as Saint Catherine of the Wheel and The Great Martyr Saint Catherine is, according to tradition, a Christian saint and virgin, who was martyred in the early 4th century at the hands of the pagan emperor Maxentius...
, suggesting the etymological origin of "Qatrawani" to be from "Catherine". Hamdan Taha points out similarities between the Muslim tradition of al-Qatrawani descending to his burial place at the time of his death to the Christian tradition of Saint Catherine descending to Mount Sinai
Mount Sinai
Mount Sinai , also known as Mount Horeb, Mount Musa, Gabal Musa , Jabal Musa meaning "Moses' Mountain", is a mountain near Saint Catherine in the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt. A mountain called Mount Sinai is mentioned many times in the Book of Exodus in the Torah and the Bible as well as the Quran...
at the time of her death.
The modern building is a renovated version of the original building built in the late Mamluk era in the 16th century. The renovation took place in 1999 undertaken by the Palestinian Department of Antiquities. The sanctuary is a rectangular building 9.8 meters in width, and 5.9 meters in length. It has two semi-spherical domes, measuring 3.8 and 3.9 meters in diameter respectively. The eastern dome is built of finely cut stones, while the western dome is built of small rough field-stones, but both kinds are of local origin. The northern wall is 85 centimeters thick and is constructed of small stones, mortar and rubble. The eastern room of the sanctuary contains a mihrab
Mihrab
A mihrab is semicircular niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the qibla; that is, the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca and hence the direction that Muslims should face when praying...
("prayer niche") with the typical orientation to Mecca
Mecca
Mecca is a city in the Hijaz and the capital of Makkah province in Saudi Arabia. The city is located inland from Jeddah in a narrow valley at a height of above sea level...
as required in Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
ic doctrine.
The cistern
Cistern
A cistern is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. Cisterns are distinguished from wells by their waterproof linings...
, currently blocked, is in front of the shrine and most likely collected rainwater in the past for the sanctuary. It possibly also drew water from the nearby spring of Wadi as-Saqi, located two kilometers south of the site. To the west of the Sheikh al-Qatrawani sanctuary is a winepress cut through stone. Its basin is 1.8 meters deep and is coated with a layer of white plaster. A stone-cut cave is located in front of the shrine, but was blocked in 1984 by the residents of 'Atara for "safety reasons". In front of the building is a courtyard and the actual tomb of Sheikh al-Qatrawnani is located adjacently west of the site and has been plundered a number of times.
Demographics
At the time of the 1922 census of Palestine1922 census of Palestine
The 1922 census of Palestine was the first census carried out by the authorities of the British Mandate of Palestine, on 23 October 1922.The reported population was 757,182, including the military and persons of foreign nationality...
, Atara had a population of 407 Muslims. By the 1931 census
1931 census of Palestine
The 1931 census of Palestine was the second census carried out by the authorities of the British Mandate of Palestine. It was carried out on 18 November 1931 under the direction of Major E. Mills. The first census had been conducted in 1922...
, this had risen to 559 Muslims in 133 occupied houses. The British population survey of 1945 found a population of 690.
Emigration surged between 1952 and 1955 to the Gulf Arab states
Arab states of the Persian Gulf
"Arab states of the Persian Gulf" or "Arab Persian Gulf states" or "Persian Gulf Arab states" or "Arabic Persian Gulf states" or "Arab States of The Gulf", are terms that refer to the six Arab states of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman, bordering the Persian Gulf....
, due to poor economic conditions in the West Bank
West Bank
The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
. Several others moved to Ramallah and Jerusalem for work. By 1961, the population was 1,110, however, it decreased tremendously after the 1967 Six-Day War
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War , also known as the June War, 1967 Arab-Israeli War, or Third Arab-Israeli War, was fought between June 5 and 10, 1967, by Israel and the neighboring states of Egypt , Jordan, and Syria...
, in which Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
captured and occupied the West Bank
West Bank
The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
from Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
. The village population slowly grew to 903 in 1982, then 976 in 1987.
In the first census taken by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics
Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics
The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics is the statistical organization under the umbrella of the Palestinian Cabinet of the Palestinian National Authority....
(PCBS) in 1997, 'Atara's population reached 1,661, of which 92 were Palestinian refugee
Palestinian refugee
Palestinian refugees or Palestine refugees are the people and their descendants, predominantly Palestinian Arabic-speakers, who fled or were expelled from their homes during and after the 1948 Palestine War, within that part of the British Mandate of Palestine, that after that war became the...
s (5.6%). The gender make-up was 50.2% male and 49.8% female. According to a PCBS estimate, 'Atara had a population of approximately 2,400 inhabitants in mid-year 2006. In the PCBS census in 2007, 'Atara had a population of 2,270, of which 1,139 were males and 1,131 females. There 495 housing units and the average household size consisted of 5.5 family members.
Economy
Until the early 1950s, 'Atara's inhabitants were dependent on agriculture as a main source of income. After 1967, many inhabitants began to work in IsraelIsrael
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. As a result, agricultural production has been further reduced and a substantial portion of 'Atara's economy became dependent residents working abroad. Transportation is an issue in the village, with only one road being able to access through Bir Zeit.
Eggs are a primary agricultural product and there are eleven egg farms in the village. Olives are also widely produced and are delivered to an oil pressing factory in the town of 'Arura, where olive oil is produced. Israeli checkpoints around 'Atara, as well as the harvest of 'Atara's olive crop by Israeli settlers from Ateret
Ateret
Ateret is a village and Israeli settlement in the Samarian hills of the West Bank located in the municipal jurisdiction of the Mateh Binyamin Regional Council 40 km north-west of Jerusalem on a hilltop at an elevation of 760 metres. To the west, the view is not obstructed from Hadera in the...
has effectively strained the village's economy.