1.
Negev
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The Negev is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The regions largest city and administrative capital is Beersheba, in the north, at its southern end is the Gulf of Aqaba and the resort city of Eilat. It contains several development towns, including Dimona, Arad and Mitzpe Ramon, as well as a number of small Bedouin cities, including Rahat and Tel as-Sabi and Lakyah. There are also several kibbutzim, including Revivim and Sde Boker, the origin of the word negev is from the Hebrew root denoting dry. In the Bible, the word Negev is also used for the direction south, during the British Mandate it was called Beersheba sub-district. The Negev covers more than half of Israel, over some 13,000 km² or at least 55% of the land area. It forms a triangle shape whose western side is contiguous with the desert of the Sinai Peninsula. The Negev has a number of interesting cultural and geological features, among the latter are three enormous, craterlike makhteshim, which are unique to the region, Makhtesh Ramon, Makhtesh Gadol, and Makhtesh Katan. The Negev is a rocky desert and it is a melange of brown, rocky, dusty mountains interrupted by wadis and deep craters. It can be split into five different ecological regions, northern, western and central Negev, the high plateau, the northern Negev, or Mediterranean zone, receives 300 mm of rain annually and has fairly fertile soils. The western Negev receives 250 mm of rain per year, with light, sand dunes can reach heights of up to 30 metres here. The high plateau area of Ramat HaNegev stands between 370 metres and 520 metres above sea level with temperatures in summer and winter. The area gets 100 mm of rain per year, with inferior, the Arabah Valley along the Jordanian border stretches 180 km from Eilat in the south to the tip of the Dead Sea in the north. The Arabah Valley is very arid with barely 50 mm of rain annually and it has inferior soils in which little can grow without irrigation and special soil additives. Vegetation in the Negev is sparse, but certain trees and plants there, among them Acacia, Pistacia, Retama, Urginea maritima. A small population of Arabian leopards, an animal in the Arabian peninsula. The Negev Tortoise is a endangered species that currently lives only in the sands of the western. The Negev shrew is a species of mammal of the family Soricidae found only in Israel, hyphaene thebaica or doum palm can be found in the Southern Negev
2.
Desert
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A desert is a barren area of land where little precipitation occurs and consequently living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to the processes of denudation, about one third of the land surface of the world is arid or semi-arid. This includes much of the regions where little precipitation occurs. Deserts can be classified by the amount of precipitation falls, by the temperature that prevails. Deserts are formed by weathering processes as large variations in temperature between day and night put strains on the rocks which consequently break in pieces, although rain seldom occurs in deserts, there are occasional downpours that can result in flash floods. Rain falling on hot rocks can cause them to shatter and the resulting fragments and this picks up particles of sand and dust and wafts them aloft in sand or dust storms. Wind-blown sand grains striking any solid object in their path can abrade the surface, rocks are smoothed down, and the wind sorts sand into uniform deposits. The grains end up as level sheets of sand or are piled high in billowing sand dunes, other deserts are flat, stony plains where all the fine material has been blown away and the surface consists of a mosaic of smooth stones. These areas are known as desert pavements and little further erosion takes place, other desert features include rock outcrops, exposed bedrock and clays once deposited by flowing water. Temporary lakes may form and salt pans may be left when waters evaporate, there may be underground sources of water in the form of springs and seepages from aquifers. Where these are found, oases can occur, plants and animals living in the desert need special adaptations to survive in the harsh environment. Plants tend to be tough and wiry with small or no leaves, water-resistant cuticles, some annual plants germinate, bloom and die in the course of a few weeks after rainfall while other long-lived plants survive for years and have deep root systems able to tap underground moisture. Animals need to cool and find enough food and water to survive. Many are nocturnal and stay in the shade or underground during the heat of the day and they tend to be efficient at conserving water, extracting most of their needs from their food and concentrating their urine. Some animals remain in a state of dormancy for long periods and they then reproduce rapidly while conditions are favorable before returning to dormancy. People have struggled to live in deserts and the surrounding lands for millennia. Nomads have moved their flocks and herds to wherever grazing is available, the cultivation of semi-arid regions encourages erosion of soil and is one of the causes of increased desertification. Many trade routes have been forged across deserts, especially across the Sahara Desert, large numbers of slaves were also taken northwards across the Sahara
3.
Israel
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Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in the Middle East, on the southeastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea and the northern shore of the Red Sea. The country contains geographically diverse features within its small area. Israels economy and technology center is Tel Aviv, while its seat of government and proclaimed capital is Jerusalem, in 1947, the United Nations adopted a Partition Plan for Mandatory Palestine recommending the creation of independent Arab and Jewish states and an internationalized Jerusalem. The plan was accepted by the Jewish Agency for Palestine, next year, the Jewish Agency declared the establishment of a Jewish state in Eretz Israel, to be known as the State of Israel. Israel has since fought several wars with neighboring Arab states, in the course of which it has occupied territories including the West Bank, Golan Heights and it extended its laws to the Golan Heights and East Jerusalem, but not the West Bank. Israels occupation of the Palestinian territories is the worlds longest military occupation in modern times, efforts to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict have not resulted in peace. However, peace treaties between Israel and both Egypt and Jordan have successfully been signed, the population of Israel, as defined by the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, was estimated in 2017 to be 8,671,100 people. It is the worlds only Jewish-majority state, with 74. 8% being designated as Jewish, the countrys second largest group of citizens are Arabs, at 20. 8%. The great majority of Israeli Arabs are Sunni Muslims, including significant numbers of semi-settled Negev Bedouins, other minorities include Arameans, Armenians, Assyrians, Black Hebrew Israelites, Circassians, Maronites and Samaritans. Israel also hosts a significant population of foreign workers and asylum seekers from Africa and Asia, including illegal migrants from Sudan, Eritrea. In its Basic Laws, Israel defines itself as a Jewish, Israel is a representative democracy with a parliamentary system, proportional representation and universal suffrage. The prime minister is head of government and the Knesset is the legislature, Israel is a developed country and an OECD member, with the 35th-largest economy in the world by nominal gross domestic product as of 2016. The country benefits from a skilled workforce and is among the most educated countries in the world with one of the highest percentage of its citizens holding a tertiary education degree. The country has the highest standard of living in the Middle East and the third highest in Asia, in the early weeks of independence, the government chose the term Israeli to denote a citizen of Israel, with the formal announcement made by Minister of Foreign Affairs Moshe Sharett. The names Land of Israel and Children of Israel have historically used to refer to the biblical Kingdom of Israel. The name Israel in these phrases refers to the patriarch Jacob who, jacobs twelve sons became the ancestors of the Israelites, also known as the Twelve Tribes of Israel or Children of Israel. The earliest known artifact to mention the word Israel as a collective is the Merneptah Stele of ancient Egypt. The area is known as the Holy Land, being holy for all Abrahamic religions including Judaism, Christianity, Islam
4.
Makhtesh Ramon
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Makhtesh Ramon is a geological feature of Israels Negev desert. The crater is 40 km long, 2–10 km wide and 500 meters deep, the only settlement in the area is the small town of Mitzpe Ramon located on the northern edge of the crater. Today the crater and surrounding area forms Israels largest national park, hundreds of millions of years ago, the Negev desert was covered by an ocean. Slowly, this started to recede northwards leaving behind a hump-shaped hill, the hump was slowly flattened by water and climatic forces. Approximately five million years ago, the Arava Rift Valley was formed, with changing their courses. The crater bottom continued to deepen at a faster rate than the surrounding walls. As the crater deepened, more layers of ancient rock were exposed with rocks at the bottom of the crater being up to 200 million years old, Makhtesh Ramon contains a diversity of rocks including clay hills known for their fantastic red and yellow colors and forms. Limestone covered by basalt can also be found in smaller hills in the southern part of the makhtesh. Shen Ramon is a made of magma which hardened whilst underground. It later rose up through cracks in the Earths surface, and today stands in striking contrast with the nearby creamy coloured southern wall of the crater, as a black sharp-edged rock. In the centre of the makhtesh is HaMinsara, a low hill made up of columnar jointed sandstone - polygonal prismatic columns of quartzite, the pterioid bivalve Family Ramonalinidae is found in early Middle Triassic rocks of Makhtesh Ramon and was named after this feature. The Asian wild ass has been reintroduced to Makhtesh Ramon, in 1995 the population had increased to 40 adults in the area. The animals are hybrids of two different subspecies of the Asian Wild Ass and it is derived from the Turkmenian kulan and the Persian onager. The original subspecies, the Syrian wild ass, is completely extinct, other larger mammals of the area include Nubian ibexes, Dorcas gazelles, striped hyenas and few Arabian leopards. The ruins of a prehistoric stone structure known as Khan Saharonim are found in the makhtesh, as it lies along the ancient Incense Route. These ruins acted as a way station for the traders and their animals as they proceeded further westwards to the Mediterranean seaport city of Gaza, mazor, Emanuel and Krasnov, Boris, editors The Makhteshim Country - a Laboratory of Nature. Birds eye view of Ramon Crater
5.
Highway 90 (Israel)
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The central section of the road traverses the West Bank, though while it passes near the city of Jericho, it does not enter areas controlled by the Palestinian Authority. There are two checkpoints which separate this central section of the road from the northern and southern sections that are located inside the Green Line. The section of Route 90 passing the Dead Sea is named Dead Sea Highway and it is along this stretch of road that Masada, Ein Gedi nature reserve, Ein Gedi Spa, Qumran Caves, and Ahava are located. The section of Route 90 passing through the Arabah is named Arava Highway, until the 1960s, a series of separate roads existed where the highway is today. After the Six-Day War, a section in the northern Dead Sea area was completed, in the early 1980s, the road was assigned the number 90. The northernmost section of the highway, from Tiberias to Metula, is the oldest, having existed since the Ottoman period. Due to this, the National Roads Company is widening and reconstructing in stages a total of 170 km of the road through the Arabah to a four lane configuration with a barrier in the middle. The total cost of all stages of this effort is NIS2.3 billion. As of the fall of 2013,40 km of the highway just north of Eilat have been widened, the Arabah section of the proposed Railway to Eilat, if and when built, will be located nearby the Arava Highway in many places along the route. Route 90 has two checkpoints, One in the north near Sdei Trumot, and one in the south just north of Ein Gedi and it is between these two checkpoints that Route 90 intersects with Route 1. There is no actual four-way intersection with Route 1, when traveling south along 90 from the Jordan Valley, the road intersects the eastern end of Route 1 at Beit HaArava Junction. Route 90 continues by making a turn at the junction. A short distance later, Route 90 continues via a turn at Lido Junction. While in Israel blocking a route is an offense, some attempts to block the road had been made during the recent years. During March 2011 Israeli social workers demonstrations, an attempt was made to block route 90, on April 2011, a group of a few dozen right wing cyclists attempted to board on the road on route to Nablus. The demonstration was stopped by the police and the military near an entrance by Lt. Col. Eisner. On 14 April 2012, a group of approximately 200 cyclists tried to board on the road and were stopped by Lt. Col. Eisner, the incident became an international scandal resulting in Eisner being suspended
6.
Jerusalem stone
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Jerusalem stone is a name applied to various types of pale limestone, dolomite and dolomitic limestone, common in and around Jerusalem that have been used in building since ancient times. One of these limestones, meleke, has used in many of the regions most celebrated structures. Jerusalem stone continues to be used in construction and incorporated in Jewish ceremonial art such as menorahs, in 2000, there were 650 stone-cutting enterprises run by Palestinians in the West Bank, producing a varied range of pink, sand, golden, and off-white bricks and tiles. The highlands of Israel and the West Bank are primarily underlain by limestone, dolomite. The stone quarried for building purposes, ranging in color white to pink, yellow. Soft Senonian limestone is found to the east of Jerusalem, and has long used as an inexpensive building material. Stone of the Cenomanian layers, known in Arabic as mizzi ahmar and mizzi yahudi, is far more durable than Senonian limestone, turonian layers yield mizzi hilu or helu and meleke, the most prized building stones. The thin layered mizzi hilu is easily quarried and worked, Meleke is soft and easy to chisel, yet hardens with exposure to the atmosphere and becomes highly durable. It was used for the public buildings of antiquity, and for the construction of the Islamic period city walls. The mountains in and around Jerusalem offer mainly limestone, dolomite, the names in common use today have been adopted from the Arab masons of the 19th and 20th centuries. It is easy to quarry, but once it is exposed to air it hardens, mizzi hilu is a hard whitish micritic limestone, usually covering beds of meleke. It is a quality building stone, but in times when the royal stone was preferred. Mizzi ahmar, a dolomitic limestone, light-colored with reddish bands. In Jerusalem it was used for ablaq-style multi-colored masonry by the Mamluks, mizzi yahudi, a dark grey or yellow crystalline dolomite or dolomitic limestone, appreciated for its hardness which makes it an excellent building material. Deir yassini is a variety of mizzi named after the village of Deir Yassin, a reddish dolomitic limestone, it is quarried in slabs used for floor and roof tiles. Mizzi akhdar is a decorative green limestone quarried on a smaller scale and its high density means that it can be finely polished. At the beginning of the 20th century it was five times more expensive than other varieties of mizzi, kakuleh or kakula, a soft and light chalky limestone found on the Mount of Olives. These vessels were considered by strictly observant Jews to always be ritually pure, nari is the other softer type of stone used in the Jerusalem area
7.
Bed and breakfast
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A bed and breakfast is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. Bed and breakfasts are often private family homes and typically have four and eleven rooms, with six being the average. Bed and breakfast is also used to describe the level of catering included in a hotels room prices, as opposed to room only, generally, guests are accommodated in private bedrooms with private bathrooms, or in a suite of rooms including an en suite bathroom. Some homes have private bedrooms with a bathroom which is shared with other guests, Breakfast is served in the bedroom, a dining room, or the hosts kitchen. B&Bs and guest houses may be operated as either a source of income or a primary occupation. Often the owners themselves prepare the breakfast and clean the rooms, properties with hired professional management are uncommon but may exist if the same owner operates multiple B&Bs. Some B&Bs operate in a niche market, floating bed and breakfasts are boats or houseboats which offer B&B accommodation, the CCGS Alexander Henry museum ship was one example. In some communities, former lighthouse keeper quarters have been turned into B&B rooms after the light has been automated or decommissioned, in China expatriates have remodelled traditional structures in quiet picturesque rural areas and opened a few rustic boutique hotels with minimum amenities. Most patrons are tourists but they are growing in popularity among the Chinese, in Hungary B&B is very popular. Usually is a small hotel, an intimate ambience and a pleasant atmosphere. It provides an alternate for the hotels. In Hungarian the B&B is called Panzió or Szálló, in India, the government is promoting the concept of bed & breakfast. The government is doing this to increase tourism, especially keeping in view the demand for hotels during the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi and they have classified B&B in 2 categories - Gold & Silver B&B. All B&B will be approved by the Ministry of Tourism who will then categorize it as Gold or Silver based upon the pre-defined criteria, charges for standard B&B is around $100 to $120 each head for a month and for premium B&B services starts from $180 and above. Registered Irish B&Bs are star rated by Fàilte Ireland and along with the majority unregistered B&Bs, generally, B&Bs in Ireland are family owned & run, with a small percentage being leased/managed but still with the personal service expected in this sector. Owners / Managers nearly always live on premises, Breakfast can mean a cooked Irish Fry or continental style buffet. The Israeli B&B is known as a zimmer, all over the country, but especially in northern Israel the zimmers has developed an extensive industry. Settlements belonging to families and rural settlements are rented for a short period
8.
Las Vegas
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The city anchors the Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area and is the largest city within the greater Mojave Desert. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city known primarily for its gambling, shopping, fine dining, entertainment and it is the leading financial, commercial, and cultural center for Nevada. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World and it is a top three destination in the United States for business conventions and a global leader in the hospitality industry, claiming more AAA Five Diamond hotels than any city in the world. Today, Las Vegas annually ranks as one of the worlds most visited tourist destinations. The citys tolerance for numerous forms of adult entertainment earned it the title of Sin City, and has made Las Vegas a popular setting for literature, films, television programs, Las Vegas was settled in 1905 and officially incorporated in 1911. At the close of the 20th century, it was the most populated American city founded within that century, population growth has accelerated since the 1960s, and between 1990 and 2000 the population nearly doubled, increasing by 85. 2%. Rapid growth has continued into the 21st century, and according to a 2013 estimate, perhaps the earliest visitors to the Las Vegas area were nomadic Paleo-Indians, who traveled there 10,000 years ago, leaving behind petroglyphs. Anasazi and Paiute tribes followed at least 2,000 years ago, a young Mexican scout named Rafael Rivera is credited as the first non-Native American to encounter the valley, in 1829. Trader Antonio Armijo led a 60-man party along the Spanish Trail to Los Angeles, the area was named Las Vegas, which is Spanish for the meadows, as it featured abundant wild grasses, as well as desert spring waters for westward travelers. The year 1844 marked the arrival of John C, frémont, whose writings helped lure pioneers to the area. Downtown Las Vegas Fremont Street is named after him, eleven years later members of the LDS Church chose Las Vegas as the site to build a fort halfway between Salt Lake City and Los Angeles, where they would travel to gather supplies. The fort was abandoned several years afterward, the remainder of this Old Mormon Fort can still be seen at the intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard and Washington Avenue. Las Vegas was founded as a city in 1905, when 110 acres of adjacent to the Union Pacific Railroad tracks were auctioned in what would become the downtown area. In 1911, Las Vegas was incorporated as a city,1931 was a pivotal year for Las Vegas. At that time, Nevada legalized casino gambling and reduced residency requirements for divorce to six weeks and this year also witnessed the beginning of construction on nearby Hoover Dam. The influx of workers and their families helped Las Vegas avoid economic calamity during the Great Depression. The construction work was completed in 1935, in 1941, the Las Vegas Army Air Corps Gunnery School was established. Currently known as Nellis Air Force Base, it is home to the team called the Thunderbirds
9.
Wildlife of Israel
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Species such as the Syrian brown bear and the Arabian ostrich have become extinct in Israel due to hunting and loss of habitat. As of May 2007,190 nature reserves have established in Israel. Israel contains a variety of mammals due to its geographical and climatic diversity, for many of the mammals, Israel is the border of their territory. The territories of species which originate in the Palearctic generally stop at the deserts, most of the mammals in Israel are of a Palearctic origin and about a tenth of the mammals are endemic to its general area. The Land of Israel once contained a variety of mammals, however in recent times many mammals such as the European water vole, the cheetah, in the modern age many mammal populations such as the Arabian leopard and the sand cat are in a high risk of extinction. In total there are 57 species of mammals which are endangered out of the total 104 species, the largest living predator in Israel is the Arabian leopard and its population too is endangered. There are 33 species of bats in Israel, the most species out of the ten mammalian orders currently in Israel, researchers from Tel Aviv University found 12 species of bat living in old army outposts in the Jordan Valley. Various animal species have become extinct due to unchecked hunting under Ottoman rule and to an extent under British Mandate rule. By the beginning of the 20th century, the oryx, the Syrian brown bear, the Asiatic lions, the Asiatic cheetah. Modern hunting laws prohibit all hunting of mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians, except those considered pests, however the packs of feral dogs that are taking over the countryside are an increasing threat to wildlife and domesticated animals. Rapid urbanization as well as overforestation have caused the destruction of natural habitats. One of the most famous examples of habitats destroyed is the drying of swamps including the Hula lake which caused the extinction of the European water vole and jungle cat. Some mammals that have gone locally extinct are being reintroduced, such as the Persian fallow deer, Israel has roughly 100 species of reptiles, of which almost a third live in its northern areas. The number of amphibians in Israel has decreased dramatically since the last century due to the drying of various swamps. The Hula painted frog was thought to be extinct until a specimen was found in November 2011. Environmental improvements in the Hula reserve have been cited as a reason for the frogs re-emergence. The amphibians of Israel include five from the order Anura and two from the order Urodela, the banded newt, the eastern spadefoot toad, and the Hula painted frog are critically endangered. The European green toad is the most widespread amphibian in Israel, while the toad is usually limited to areas with a constant supply of water, populations have begun to spread into drier places
10.
Haaretz
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It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently still in print in Israel, and is now published in both Hebrew and English in Berliner format. The English edition is published and sold together with the International New York Times, both Hebrew and English editions can be read on the Internet. In North America, it out as a weekly newspaper. It is known for its left-wing and liberal stances on domestic, as of 2016, the newspaper had a weekday exposure rate of 3. 9% in Israel, significantly lower than the countrys other national newspapers. Haaretz was first published in 1918 as a newspaper sponsored by the British military government in Palestine, in 1919, it was taken over by a group of socialist-oriented Zionists, mainly from Russia. The newspaper was established on 18 June 1919 by a group of businessmen including prominent philanthropist Isaac Leib Goldberg, later, the name was shortened to Haaretz. The literary section of the paper attracted leading Hebrew writers of the time, the newspaper was initially published in Jerusalem. From 1919 to 1922, the paper was headed by a succession of editors and it was shut down briefly due to a budgetary shortfall and reopened in Tel Aviv at the beginning of 1923 under the editorship of Moshe Glickson, who held the post for 15 years. The Tel Aviv municipality granted the financial support by paying in advance for future advertisements. Salman Schocken, a wealthy German Jewish Zionist who owned a chain of department stores in Germany and his son, Gershom Schocken, became the chief editor in 1939 and held that position until his death in 1990. Until August 2006, the Schocken family owned 100% of the Haaretz Group, the deal was negotiated with the help of former Israeli ambassador to Germany, Avi Primor. This deal was seen as controversial in Israel as DuMont Schaubergs father, Kurt Neven DuMont, was member of the German Nazi party, while his publishing house promoted Nazi ideology. On 12 June 2011, it was announced that Russian-Israeli businessman Leonid Nevzlin had purchased a 20% stake in the Haaretz Group, buying 15% from the family and this means that the Schocken family now owns 60% and M. DuMont Schauberg and Leonid Nevzlin have 20% each. In October 2012, a union strike mobilized to protest planned layoffs by the Haaretz management, as a consequence, both the Haaretz newspaper and its TheMarker business supplement were not printed for one day. According to Israel Radio, it was the first time since 1965 that a newspaper did not go to press on account of a strike, the newspapers editorial policy was defined by Gershom Schocken, who was editor-in-chief from 1939 to 1990. Schocken was succeeded as editor-in-chief by Hanoch Marmari, in 2004 David Landau replaced Marmari and was succeeded by Dov Alfon in 2008. The current editor-in-chief of the newspaper is Aluf Benn, who replaced Alfon in August 2011, charlotte Halle became editor of the English Print Edition in February 2008. Haaretz describes itself as having a liberal outlook both on domestic issues and on international affairs
11.
Arad, Israel
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Arad is a city in the Southern District of Israel. It is located on the border of the Negev and Judean Deserts,25 kilometres west of the Dead Sea and 45 kilometres east of Beersheba. The city is home to a population of 24,436, including Ashkenazi and Sephardi Jews. The city is notable for its clean, dry air and serves as an attraction to asthmatics worldwide. After attempts to settle the area in the 1920s, Arad was founded in November 1962 as an Israeli development town, Arads population grew significantly with the Aliyah from the Commonwealth of Independent States in the 1990s, and peaked in 2002 at 24,500 residents. Landmarks in Arad include the ruins of Tel Arad, Arad Park, the city is known for its annual summer music festival, The Arad Festival. Arad is named after the Biblical Canaanite town located at Tel Arad, however, Shoshenq Is chronicles seem to mention a settlement in Tel Arad. During the Byzantine period, the location was correctly identified by Eusebius. Ancient Arad became a Christian bishopric, no longer a residential bishopric, Arad is today listed by the Catholic Church as a titular see. Nine men and two women attempted the task, but after four months were forced to leave because water was not found in the area. On 15 November 1960, a team was appointed by the Israeli cabinet to examine the possibility of establishing a city in the northeastern Negev desert. An initial budget of 50,000 Israeli liras was granted for the project, on 31 January 1961, the final location was chosen, and plans were approved for roads and water connections. In March 1961, blueprints for a city of 10, 000-20,000 residents were drawn up, yona Pitelson was the chief architect and planner. The plan took into account topography and climate, with buildings constructed with large inner courtyards that offered protection from the desert sun. High density residential areas were built first in order to create an urban milieu, the oil company Nefta built a work camp in the area in July 1961, consisting of six temporary sheds, after oil was found there in commercial quantities. The town itself was established in 1962 by a group of young ex-kibbutz and ex-moshav members seeking an environment free of overcrowding, traffic, noise, the founding ceremony was held on 21 November, and attended by then-Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion. It was one of the last development towns to be founded, according to the city website, Arad was the first pre-planned city in Israel. Until 1964 Arad had about 160 families, most of whom were natives
12.
Ashdod
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Ashdod is the sixth-largest city and the largest port in Israel accounting for 60% of the countrys imported goods. Ashdod is located in the Southern District of the country, on the Mediterranean coast where it is situated between Tel Aviv to the north and Ashkelon to the south, Jerusalem is 53 km to the east. The city is also an important regional industrial center and this article is dealing with both these historic towns and other ancient sites now located within the territory of modern Ashdod. The first documented settlement at Ashdod dates to the Canaanite culture of the 17th century BCE. Ashdod is mentioned 13 times in the Bible, during its pre-1956 history the city was settled by Philistines, Israelites, Greek colonists coming in the wake of Alexanders conquests, Romans and Byzantines, Arabs, Crusaders, and Ottoman Turks. Modern Ashdod was established in 1956 on the hills near the site of the ancient town. Being a planned city, expansion followed a main development plan, according to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, Ashdod had a population of 220,174 in 2015, with an area of 47,242 dunams. Three stone tools dating from the Neolithic era were discovered, but no evidence of a Stone Age settlement in Ashdod was found. The site of Ashdod in the Bronze Age and Iron Ages was at a tell just south of the modern city and it was excavated by archaeologists in nine seasons between 1962 and 1972. The effort was led during the first few years by David Noel Freedman of the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, the remaining seasons were headed by Dothan for the Israel Antiquities Authority. The earliest major habitation in Ashdod dates to the 17th century BCE, Ashdod is first mentioned in written documents from Late Bronze Age Ugarit, which indicate that the city was a center of export for dyed woolen purple fabric and garments. At the end of the 13th century BCE the Sea Peoples conquered and destroyed Ashdod, by the beginning of the 12th century BCE, the Philistines, generally thought to have been one of the Sea Peoples, ruled the city. During their reign, the city prospered and was a member of the Philistine Pentapolis, in 950 BCE Ashdod was destroyed during Pharaoh Siamuns conquest of the region. The city was not rebuilt until at least 815 BCE, asdûdu led the revolt of Philistines, Judeans, Edomites, and Moabites against Assyria after expulsion of king Ahimiti, whom Sargon had installed instead of his brother Azuri. Gath belonged to the kingdom of Ashdod at that time, assyrian king Sargon IIs commander-in-chief, whom the King James Bible calls simply Tartan, Isaiah 20,1 regained control of Ashdod in 712/711 BCE and forced the usurper Yamani to flee. Sargons general destroyed the city and exiled its residents, including some Israelites who were settled in Media. Mitinti was king at the time of Sargons son Sennacherib, psamtik I of Egypt is reported to have besieged the great city Azotus for twenty-nine years, the biblical references to the remnant of Ashdod are interpreted as allusions to this event. The city absorbed another blow in 605 BCE, when Nebuchadnezzar conquered it, in 539 BCE the city was rebuilt by the Persians
Mitzpe Ramon travel guide from Wikivoyage
