Kiryat Shmona
Kiryat Shmona in the winter of 2006; Mt. Hermon is in the background
Hebrew	קִרְיַת שְׁמוֹנָה
Name meaning	City of Eight
Founded in	1950
Government	City (from 1974)
Also spelled	Qiryat Shemona (officially)
District	North
Population	22,000 (2005)
Jurisdiction	9,960 dunams (10 km²)
Mayor	Sami Malul

view of Kiryat Shmona from Manara cliffs

Kiryat Shmona (Hebrew: קִרְיַת שְׁמוֹנָה‎, "City of the Eight", alternatively spelt קריית שמונה) is a city located in the North District of Israel on the western slopes of the Hula Valley on the Lebanese border. Mount Hermon ( הר חרמון Har Hermon, جبل الشيخجبل حرمون Jabal el-Shaiykh, Jabal Haramon The following list of Israeli cities is based on the current index of the There are six main administrative districts of Israel, known in Hebrew as mehozot (מחוזות singular mahoz) and fifteen The North District (מחוז הצפון mehoz hatzafon, also known as the Northern District) is one of Israel 's six administrative districts A dunam or dönüm, dunum, donum is a unit of Area used in the Ottoman Empire and still used in various standardized versions A city is an Urban area with a large Population and a particular Administrative, Legal, or Historical status The North District (מחוז הצפון mehoz hatzafon, also known as the Northern District) is one of Israel 's six administrative districts For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Israel topics. The Hula Valley (עמק החולה Emek HaHula) is an agricultural region in northern Israel with abundant fresh water Lebanon (ˈlɛbənɒn Arabic: ar لبنان Lubnān) officially the Republic of Lebanon or Lebanese Republic (ar الجمهورية اللبنانية The name was named for the eight people, including Joseph Trumpeldor, who died in 1920 defending Tel Hai. Joseph Trumpeldor (b December 1, 1880, d March 1 1920, יוסף טרומפלדור Иосиф Трумпельдор was an early Tel Hai (תל חי meaning "Hill of Life" in Hebrew Talha in Arabic) is the modern name of a settlement in northern Israel the site of an early battle Today, about one-third of Kiryat Shmona's population of 22,000 are younger than 19, and the majority of its inhabitants are Jews, particularly of Sephardic descent. PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ See also Judaism by country Jewish ethnic divisions refers to a number of distinct communities within the world's ethnically Jewish population

History

The town of Kiryat Shmona was established in 1950 on the site of a former Arab village as a transit camp for immigrants who worked mainly in farming, and was later classified as a development town. The Ma'abarot (מעברות were Refugee camps in Israel in the 1950s Development town (עיירת פיתוח Ayarat Pitu'ah) is a term used to refer to the new settlements that were built in Israel during the 1950s in order to expand Stone rubble from the houses marks the site whilst the school, village mosque and minaret, as well as the Mandate government's office buildings stand abandoned. The level land surrounding the site was cultivated by the settlers and has continued to be done so.

Attacks

Kiryat Shmona has been the scene of several attacks from Arab terrorists operating from across the Lebanese border. On April 11, 1974, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command, sent three members across the border from Lebanon to Kiryat Shmona. Events 491 - Flavius Anastasius becomes Byzantine Emperor, with the name of Anastasius I. Year 1974 ( MCMLXXIV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the 1974 Gregorian calendar. The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command (الجبهة الشعبية لتحرير فلسطين - القيادة They killed eighteen residents of an apartment building, including many children, before being killed in an exchange of fire at the complex, which became known as the Kiryat Shmona massacre. The Kiryat Shmona massacre was an attack by three Palestinian terrorists on civilians in the Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona on 11 April 1974 ^[1][2]

The city continued to be the target of attacks after this, including Katyusha rocket attacks by the PLO in July 1981 ^[3], a Katyusha rocket attack by the PLO in March 1986 (killing a teacher and injuring four students and one adult), ^[4][5][6], and further Katyusha rocket attacks by Hezbollah during 1996's Operation Grapes of Wrath. Katyusha multiple rocket launchers (Катюша are a type of Rocket artillery originally built and fielded by the Soviet Union in the Second World War The Palestine Liberation Organization ( PLO) (منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية or Munazzamat al-Tahrir al-Filastiniyyah) is a political and paramilitary Hezbollah (حزب الله, literally " party of God " is a Shi'a Islamic political and Paramilitary organisation Historical Background See also Israel-Lebanon conflict After continual cross border attacks committed by forces in Southern Lebanon, the Israeli army ^[7] The citizens of the town had suffered almost daily attack from the mid 70's until the year 2000, when the IDF left Lebanon. In the years 2000-2006 the locals suffered loud explosion noises every few weeks because of Anti Plane rockets launched at IDF planes flying nearby.

During the 2006 Lebanon War, the city often received media attention because of its being the frequent target of multiple Hezbollah Katyusha rocket attacks. Background See also Israel-Lebanon conflict The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO had engaged in cross-border attacks from Southern Lebanon On July 13, 2006, Kiryat Shmona closed its courts due to the ongoing danger of rocket attacks. Events 1174 - William I of Scotland, a key rebel in the Revolt of 1173-1174, is captured at Alnwick by forces loyal to Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. The next day, three Hezbollah rockets landed in the town. On July 17, Hezbollah launched more Katyusha rockets that hit Kiryat Shmona and neighboring towns. Events 180 - Twelve inhabitants of Scillium in North Africa are executed for being Christians The night of July 17, as a barrage of Hezbollah rockets were launched into northern Israeli communities, a Katyusha hit a house near Kiryat Shmona. Events 180 - Twelve inhabitants of Scillium in North Africa are executed for being Christians During the war, a total of 1012 Katyusha rockets hit Kiryat Shmona. Approximately half of the city’s residents had left the area, and the other half who remained stayed in bomb shelters.

Industry

Meytav, Israel's largest technology incubator, is based in Kiryat Shmona. Pictured above is one of their company labs in 2007.

Kiryat Shmona has diverse economic activities amongst its inhabitants. The town's economy is based on both light industry, involving consumer-oriented products such as communications, information technology, and electronics as well as agriculture on the surrounding lands and tourism.

The town has a cable car link with kibbutz Manara above in the Naftali mountain range and also is home to an activity center and toboggan run located in the south of the town. A toboggan is a simple Sled used on snow to carry one or more people (often children down a hill or other slope for recreation

Demographics

According to CBS, in 2001 the ethnic makeup of the city was 97. 9% Jewish and other non-Arabs, without significant Arab population. PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ The araB gene Promoter is a bacterial promoter activated by e L-arabinose binding In 2001 there were 121 immigrant settlers. The Jewish population of the town is largely of North African and Middle Eastern heritage, and many are industrial workers employed in local small industry and in neighboring kibbutzim. North Africa or Northern Africa is the Northernmost Region of the African Continent, separated by the Sahara from Sub-Saharan The Middle East is a Subcontinent with no clear boundaries often used as a synonym to Near East, in opposition to Far East. A kibbutz ( Hebrew: קיבוץ קִבּוּץ lit "gathering clustering" plural kibbutzim) is a collective community in

According to CBS, in 2001 there were 10,800 males and 10,700 females. The population of the city was spread out with 33. 5% 19 years of age or younger, 19. 8% between 20 and 29, 19. 3% between 30 and 44, 15. 3% from 45 to 59, 3. 5% from 60 to 64, and 8. 5% 65 years of age or older. The population growth rate in 2001 was 1. 8%.

Income

According to CBS, as of 2000, in the city there were 8,303 salaried workers and 467 are self-employed. The mean monthly wage in 2000 for a salaried worker in the city is 4,306 shekels, a real change of 4. The Israeli New Sheqel ( ( sign: ₪; code: ILS) (also spelled unofficially shekel; pl 6% over the course of 2000. Salaried males have a mean monthly wage of 5,443 shekels (a real change of 7. 1%) versus 3,065 shekels for females (a real change of -2. 2%). The mean income for the self-employed is 6,769. There are 564 people who receive unemployment benefits and 1,655 people who receive an income guarantee.

Education

According to CBS, there are 12 schools and 4,339 students in the city. They are spread out as 9 elementary schools and 2,355 elementary school students, and 6 high schools and 1,984 high school students. 49. 3% of 12th grade students were entitled to a matriculation certificate in 2001.

Sport

Kiryat Shmona is the smallest city in Israel with a top flight football club, Ironi Kiryat Shmona. Hapoel Ironi Kiryat Shmona FC (הפועל עירוני קרית שמונה is an Israeli football club based in Kiryat Shmona. The club won promotion to the top division for the first time at the end of the 2006-7 season.

Twin cities

• Nancy, France

Panorama of central Kiryat Shmona

References