Har Adar is an
Israeli settlementAn Israeli settlement is a Jewish civilian community built on land that was captured by Israel from Jordan, Egypt, and Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War and is considered occupied territory by the international community. Such settlements currently exist in the West Bank...
and
local councilLocal councils are one of the three types of local government found in Israel, with the other two being cities and regional councils. As of 2003, there were 144 local councils in Israel, these being settlements which pass a minimum threshold enough to justify their operations as independent...
in the
Seam ZoneSeam Zone is a term used to refer to a land area in the West Bank located east of the Green Line and west of Israel's separation barrier, populated largely by Israelis in settlements such as Alfei Menashe, Ariel, Beit Arye, Modi'in Illit, Giv'at Ze'ev, Ma'ale Adumim, Beitar Illit and Efrat.As of...
and the Maccabim sub-region of the
West BankThe 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...
. It was founded in 1982 and has a population of 3,200. It is located on Road 425 next to
Abu GhoshAbu Ghosh is an Israeli Arab town in Israel, located west of Jerusalem on the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem highway. It is situated 610–720 meters above sea level. In 2010, it set the Guinness World Record for largest dish of hummus...
and the
Green LineGreen Line refers to the demarcation lines set out in the 1949 Armistice Agreements between Israel and its neighbours after the 1948 Arab-Israeli War...
, about 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) west of Jerusalem. Har Adar is ranked high on the Israeli socio-economic scales, at 9/10.
The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank
illegal under international lawThe international community considers the establishment of Israeli settlements in the Israeli-occupied territories illegal under international law, but Israel maintains that they are consistent with international law because it does not agree that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies to the...
, but the Israeli government disputes this.
History and name
The location of Har Adar was named Radar Hill , for the
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
British military installation there which had an anti-air radar for the protection of
Jerusalem. The installation was handed over to the Jordanian
Arab LegionThe Arab Legion was the regular army of Transjordan and then Jordan in the early part of the 20th century.-Creation:...
on May 10, 1948, prior to the second phase of the
1948 Arab-Israeli WarThe 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known to Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation The war commenced after the termination of the British Mandate for Palestine and the creation of an independent Israel at midnight on 14 May 1948 when, following a period of civil war, Arab armies invaded...
. 23 attempts by the
PalmachThe Palmach was the elite fighting force of the Haganah, the underground army of the Yishuv during the period of the British Mandate of Palestine. The Palmach was established on May 15, 1941...
's
Harel BrigadeHarel Brigade is a reserve brigade of the Israel Defense Forces, today part of the Northern Command. It played a critical role in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.- War of Independence :...
to conquer it failed, although the Jewish force held the position for four days starting May 22, 1948. It was finally captured in the
Six-Day WarThe 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...
by an armored brigade, also called Harel. A monument for the fallen soldiers of the brigade stands at the top of the town.
The current settlement was founded in 1982 by the Radar Hill Organization. Har Adar (lit. Mount Adar) was a similar-sounding Hebrew name given to the hill and the settlement.
Status under international law
Like all Israeli settlements in the
Israeli-occupied territoriesThe Israeli-occupied territories are the territories which have been designated as occupied territory by the United Nations and other international organizations, governments and others to refer to the territory seized by Israel during the Six-Day War of 1967 from Egypt, Jordan, and Syria...
, Har Adar is considered illegal under international law, though Israeli disputes this. The international community considers Israeli settlements to violate the
Fourth Geneva ConventionThe Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, commonly referred to as the Fourth Geneva Convention and abbreviated as GCIV, is one of the four treaties of the Geneva Conventions. It was adopted in August 1949, and defines humanitarian protections for civilians...
's prohibition on the transfer of an occupying power's civilian population into occupied territory. Israel disputes that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies to the Palestinian territories as they had not been legally held by a sovereign prior to Israel taking control of them. This view has been rejected by the
International Court of JusticeThe International Court of Justice is the primary judicial organ of the United Nations. It is based in the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands...
and the
International Committee of the Red CrossThe International Committee of the Red Cross is a private humanitarian institution based in Geneva, Switzerland. States parties to the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols of 1977 and 2005, have given the ICRC a mandate to protect the victims of international and...
.
Demographics
In 2009, the population of Har Adar was 99.3% Jewish, with an additional 0.7% being other non-Arabs. Out of the 3,200 residents, 1,700 were men, and 1,600 women. The age distribution was as follows:
| Age | 0–4 | 5–9 | 10–14 | 15–19 | 20–29 | 30–44 | 45–59 | 60–64 | 65–74 | 75+ |
| Percentage |
9.6 |
10.3 |
9.8 |
8.0 |
12.4 |
20.3 |
17.6 |
6.7 |
4.4 |
0.9 |
| Source: Israel Central Bureau of Statistics The Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , abbreviated CBS, is an Israeli government office established in 1949 to carry out research and publish statistical data on all aspects of Israeli life, including population, society, economy, industry, education and physical infrastructure.It is headed by a...
|
Economy
Har Adar is ranked 9/10 (high) on the Israeli socio-economic scale. According to Business Data Israel (BDI), in 2006 Har Adar had the most stable economic situation of all Israeli local councils, along with
Kfar ShmaryahuKfar Shmaryahu is a local council in Israel, within the Tel Aviv District. The council was founded in 1937, during the Fifth Aliyah to Israel.Kfar Shmaryahu is ranked very highly on the Israeli socio-economic scale...
. In 2009, the municipal surplus stood at NIS 187,000.
In 2009, there were 1,471 salaried workers in Har Adar. The average salary for males was NIS 15,987, and 8,882 for women – both far higher than the national average. 25.5% salaried workers worked for minimum wage. In addition, there were 143 self-employed workers, with an average income of NIS 12,311.
Labor relations
Some 600 Palestinian workers travel to Har Adar every day to work as day laborers. A directive from the local council forbids the Palestinian laborers from walking on foot in the community, not even in order to shop at the local grocery store. Palestinian workers must depend on their employers to provide for their needs or to drive them if they need to go somewhere. The policy has been labeled racist by the Association for Civil Rights in Israel.
See also