al-Qubeiba is a small Palestinian

Palestinian territories

The Palestinian territories comprise the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Since the Palestinian Declaration of Independence in 1988, the region is today recognized by three-quarters of the world's countries as the State of Palestine or simply Palestine, although this status is not recognized by the...

 town in the Jerusalem Governorate

Jerusalem Governorate

The Jerusalem Governorate is one of 16 Palestinian governorates situated in the central portion of the West Bank. Its claimed district capital is East Jerusalem, which is, however, under Israeli occupation and regarded by Israel as being part of its territory. The total land area of the...

, located 11 kilometers Northwest of Jerusalem in the northern 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...

. According to 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....

, the town had a population of 3,321 in 2010. al-Qubeiba lies at an altitude of 783m to 795m above sea-level. It is located in a conflict area near the border with Israel between Ramallah and Jerusalem. The settlement of Giv'on HaHadashah

Giv'on HaHadashah

Giv'on HaHadashah |Gibeon]]) is an Israeli communal settlement northwest of Jerusalem in the West Bank. It's located near Jerusalem's Ramot neighborhood and adjacent to Giv'at Ze'ev. This communal settlement receives its municipal services from the Matte Binyamin Regional Council...

 lies 5 km southeast of al-Qubeiba. It is surrounded by the town of Biddu (east), Beit 'Anan (northwest), Qatanna (southwest), and Kharayib Umm al-Lahim (west). Unlike the surrounding region, al-Qubeiba has large areas covered with pine and olive trees.

The town is run by a town council elected every 4 years and is mainly funded by the Palestinian Ministry of Local Authority. al-Qubeiba has a locally funded-and-run "al-Qubeiba Club" that provides numerous educational, vocational, sports, and scout activities to the residents of the town. The town also enjoys the presence of one park (with an outdoor semi-olympic swimming pool) and two large multi-purpose halls for weddings and other major events. It also has a fully automated modern olive press that operates to service farmers from the town and the neighboring towns and villages, being one of the few olive presses in the West Bank licensed to produce extra virgin organic olive oil.

Geopolitical Status

al-Qubeiba along with Beit Duqqu

Beit Duqqu

Beit Duqqu is a Palestinian village in the Jerusalem Governorate, located 12 kilometers northwest of Jerusalem in the northern West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of 1,600 in 2006....

, Beit 'Anan

Beit 'Anan

Beit 'Anan is a Palestinian village in northwest Jerusalem under the jurisdiction of the Jerusalem Municipality. In 2007, it had a population of 3,941. Some residents of Beit 'Anan hold Israeli identity cards, while others hold Palestinian identity cards....

, Beit Surik, Qatanna

Qatanna

Qatanna is a Palestinian town in the central West Bank part of the Jerusalem Governorate, located twelve kilometers northwest of Jerusalem. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of approximately 7,500 inhabitants in 2006...

, Biddu

Biddu, Jerusalem

Biddu is a Palestinian town in the Jerusalem Governorate, located 6 kilometers Northeast of Jerusalem in the northern West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of 6,368 in 2006. Biddu is at an altitude of 806m to 834m...

, Beit Ijza

Beit Ijza

Beit Ijza is a village in the West Bank with an area of 2526 dunams. Located approximately six miles from Jerusalem, it posted a population of 671 in 2006.-External references:...

, Kharayib Umm al-Lahim and at-Tira form the "Biddu enclave". The enclave is linked to Ramallah by underpasses and a road that is fenced on both sides. From the "Biddu enclave" Palestinians will travel along a fenced road that passes under a bypass road to Bir Nabala

Bir Nabala

Bir Nabala is a Palestinian town in the West Bank located eight kilometers northeast of Jerusalem. In mid-year 2006, it had an estimated population of 6,100 residents...

 enclave, then on a second underpass under Bypass Road 443 to 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...

.

Tourism

al-Qubeiba has always been known for its cool climate during summer time and its beautiful nature and excellent views of the hills before the coastal area to the west. Also, al-Qubeiba was, and still remains, a touristic destination for the visitors of Palestine and Israel because it houses an over-a-decade-old Franciscan church that was built on the remains of a historic church in the same place where Jesus Christ is thought to have shared bread with two of his disciples. The town has remains of the cobble-stoned Roman road that connected the coastal city of Haifa to Jerusalem. This historic road is surrounded by remains of Roman houses of those who inhabited the town which was a rest-area for travellers on that road.

Transportation

al-Qubeiba is accessible only by road (via service-shuttles or buses) from either Ramallah or Jersalem. Nonetheless, due to the closure of the roads from the town to Jerusalem during the second intifada, only those with foreign passports or with the Jerusalem ID cards can reach the town from Jerusalem. This leaves the only possible access to the town to be from Ramallah via buses #40 and #45 and the service shuttles destined to al-Qubeiba, Qatannah, and Beit 'Anan (all found in the southern public transportation station in Ramallah, just across from the Yasser Arafat Square "al-Sa'a Square" in the city). Several mini-vans operate on the road between al-Qubeiba and the neighboring villages and towns.

Education

al-Qubeiba has two government-run schools (one mixed-gender elementary and another all-girls secondary schools). It also enjoys several kindergartens and pre-schools. The town also houses the "al-Qubeiba Nursing School" that operates in association with the Bethlehem University School of Nursing to provide students with a Bachelors degree in nursing.

Health

The medical facilities for al-Qubeiba are classified as level 2 according to the Palestinian National Authority

Palestinian National Authority

The Palestinian Authority is the administrative organization established to govern parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip...

Ministry of Health. Governmental primary and secondary health care clinics operate in the town in addition to a German-run clinic. Several other private medical and dental clinics also exist.