Al-Karmil


al-Karmil is a Palestinian village located twelve kilometers south of Hebron. The village is in the Hebron Governorate Southern West Bank, within Area A under total Palestinian control. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the village had a population of 3,741 in 2007. The primary health care facilities for the village are designated by the Ministry of Health as level 2.

History

There are three references to al-Karmil in the Bible. "Carmel" is mentioned as a city of Judah, the place where Saul erects a monument after the expedition against the Amalekites, and where Nabal the Carmelite resides.
In the Byzantine era, around the 6th or 7th century CE, a church was built here, on the western side of the remains. In the 19th century, it was described as having three casemated arrow-slits on the east side. Outlines of a further two churches were uncovered to the immediate north and south.
Al-Muqaddasi describes it in 985 as "a village in the further limits of the Hebron territory, in Jund Filastin. This is the Carmel mentioned in Joshua xv.55."
It was mentioned in Crusader sources in 1172/3, as the place King Amalric of Jerusalem assembled his army.

Ottoman era

In 1838 Edward Robinson noted here the remains of an ancient tower and an ancient church.
In 1863, Victor Guérin visited, and noted the remains of an ancient church.
In October 1874, the PEF's Survey of Western Palestine found here extensive ruins, and a reservoir filled with water. Remains of a castle, possibly of Crusader origin, in addition to a church were also found.
The SWP also traced an ancient road from Jerusalem to Al-Karmil.

Modern period

During the Jordanian era, the census of 1961 found 146 inhabitants in al-Karmil.
In 1967, in a census conducted by Israel after it occupied, the West Bank in the Six-day War, the village was reported to have 76 residents in 17 households.
The site contains an ancient reservoir, Birket Al-Karmel, which has been transformed into a major recreation area, with a swimming pool. Gideon Levy writes:
The terraces, decorative landscaping, Hebron stones, washrooms and a spring that gushes from the rock next to the pool – all make this one of the most spectacular outdoor sites in the West Bank.

Twice, in 2015, settler tourists under IDF guard, made incursions into the park, after the army forced the local children out of the pool and allotted them to a corner while the settlers enjoyed the pool and the site.

Footnotes