Mevaseret Zion
Mewasseret Zion is a suburb of Jerusalem in Israel. It is located about 10 kilometers from Jerusalem. It was founded by the merger of two places - Maoz Zion and Yerushalayim - Mevaseret to a municipality. Mevaseret Zion is located on a mountain ridge at 750 m altitude. It is situated on both sides of the highway from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv.
History
Because of its strategically important location, the territory of today's Mevaseret Zion has been inhabited since ancient times. From various historians this area is identified with the biblical Efron (eg, Joshua 15:9), a border town on the territory of the tribe of Judah.
The Romans built a fortified military camp that was called Castellum. From here, the road to Jerusalem was controlled. On the ruins of this fort, the Crusaders built the castle Castellum Belveer, the remains of which can still be seen today. An Arab village Coloniya arose later around the castle. The House of Muhktars was built on the ruins of the Crusader castle.
Only again towards the end of the British Mandate in Palestine the hill gained new importance. When, after the UN Partition Plan for Palestine increased hostilities between Arabs and Jews in November 1947, the road to Jerusalem from Arab irregulars was blocked for supply convoys to the besieged Jewish part of Jerusalem. In this case, the Arab village and the remains of the Crusader castle had great strategic importance. In connection with the operation Nachshon 1948 bloody battles around the town took place between April 2, 1948 and April 9, in which ultimately the Israeli armed forces of the Haganah and Palmach the remained victorious. This was the first Jewish military conquest in the area Israeli War of Independence. The Arab inhabitants fled from the fighting.
On the territory of the former village in 1951 the place Ma'oz Zion was founded, in which new immigrants from Iraq, Kurdistan, North Africa and Iran settled.
Mevaseret Yerushalayim was established east of Ma'oz Zion in 1956 by Jewish immigrants from North Africa.
1963 were Ma'oz Zion and Mevaseret a common council. The new common name, Mewasseret Zion goes back to Isaiah 40.9.
In the following years, many residents of Jerusalem were looking for a larger living space or the quieter suburban atmosphere after Mewasseret Zion. The embassies of Bolivia and Paraguay have their headquarters here
Population
The Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics indicates when the census of 22 May 1961 May 19, 1972, June 4, 1983, November 4, 1995 and December 28, 2008, the following for regional management population figures:
Twinning
- Germany Sankt Augustin, North Rhine -Westphalia, Germany since 2001
- United States White Plains, New York, United States since 2004