Ahiya, Mateh Binyamin
Ahiya (Hebrew: אחיה) (also transliterated as Achiya or Achia) is an Israeli outpost in the West Bank, about 1.5 km southeast of the Palestinian village of Jalud. It falls under the purview of the Mateh Binyamin Regional Council. The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.[1]
It is named after the Biblical prophet Ahijah the Shilonite who lived in Shiloh, which is about 3 km to its west.
Demographics
As of 2004 permanent construction of homes in Ahiya was being carried out.[2] As of 2011 the population of Ahiya was about 50 people.[3]
Geography
Ahiya is near the Israeli outpost of Shvut Rachel[4] as well as the Palestinian village of Jalud.
According to ARIJ, Israel confiscated land from the Palestinian villages of Jalud and Qusra in order to construct the Israeli outposts of Ahiya and Esh Kodesh.[5]
Economy
Ahiya has the only Jewish owned oil press in the region. Settlers from the region bring their olives to Ahiya to be pressed.[4]
Controversy
Farmers from Jalud have accused settlers from Ahiya of taking harvested olives from them by force.[4]
References
- "The Geneva Convention". BBC News. 10 December 2009. Retrieved 23 August 2012.
- "Settlement Monitor". Journal of Palestine Studies. 34 (3). Spring 2005. doi:10.1525/jps.2005.34.3.150. JSTOR 10.1525/jps.2005.34.3.150.
- "Concerns over Rising Violence in West Bank". The Palestine Chronicle. March 1, 2011. Retrieved 23 August 2012.
- "From the Hebrew Press". Journal of Palestine Studies. 32 (3): 90–103. Spring 2003. doi:10.1525/jps.2003.32.3.90. JSTOR 10.1525/jps.2003.32.3.90.
- Qusra Village Profile, ARIJ, p. 15