Herod's Palace (Herodium)

Herodion (Ancient Greek: Ἡρώδειον; Arabic: هيروديون; Hebrew: הרודיון), Herodium (Latin), or Jabal al-Fureidis (Arabic: جبل فريديس, lit. '"Mountain of the Little Paradise"') is an ancient fortress located 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) south of Jerusalem and 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) southeast of Bethlehem. It is located between the villages of Beit Ta'mir, Za'atara and Jannatah. It is identified with the site of Herodium, built by King of Judea Herod the Great built between 23 and 15 BCE. Herodium is 758 meters (2,487 ft) above sea level.The site is in Area C of the West Bank, formally under the jurisdiction of the Israeli Civil Administration, a body of military officers, and in practice it is administered jointly with the Israel Nature and Parks Authority. Israel asserts that it is entitled to work in the area under the Oslo Accords, but the Palestinian authorities say Israel has no right to undertake digs there or remove artifacts that Israel discovered in excavations there.

Sdeh Bar Farm (Hebrew: חַוַּת שְׂדֶה בָּר, Havat Sdeh Bar) is an Israeli settlement in the West Bank. Originally an Israeli outpost, illegal under Israeli law, it has been retroactively designated a suburb of Nokdim, located adjacent to the Palestinian village of Jubbet ad-Dib. Located south of Bethlehem near the foothills of Herodium, it falls under the jurisdiction of Gush Etzion Regional Council. The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.

Jubbet ad-Dib (Arabic: جبة الذيب, also spelled Jubbet adh-Dhib) is a small Palestinian village in the central West Bank, part of the Bethlehem Governorate. It is located about 6.5 kilometers southeast of Bethlehem and is just east of the Palestinian town of Jannatah and north of the Israeli settlement Kfar Eldad. Its lands border on the settlement of Havat Sdeh Bar. It had a population of 144 according to the 2017 census by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS). Jubbet ad-Dib has a total land area of 402 dunams, of which 8 constitute as built-up area, and is situated at an altitude of 628 meters above sea level.

Beit Ta'mir (Arabic: خربة بيت تعمر) is a Palestinian village located six kilometers southeast of Bethlehem.The town is in the Bethlehem Governorate central West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the village had a population of 1,596 in 2017. The village is named after the 'Arab al-Ta'mira Bedouin tribe of the Bethlehem area, and along with Tuqu' and Za'atara forms the 'Arab al-Ta'mira village cluster.

Kfar Eldad (Hebrew: כְּפַר אֶלְדָּד) is an Israeli settlement organised as a community settlement in the West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Kfar Eldad is administered by the Gush Etzion Regional Council. The settlement is in the vicinity of Herodium and overlooks the Judean Desert. The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank, like Kfar Eldad, illegal under international law.

Al-Asakra (Arabic: العساكرة) is a Palestinian village in the Bethlehem Governorate in the south-central West Bank, located 4.5 kilometers southeast of Bethlehem. It is a part of the Jannatah municipality. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the village had a population of over 1,001 inhabitants in mid-year 2006.Al-Asakra has a land area of 2,116 dunams and is a part of the larger Arab al-Ta'amira village cluster, lies between the towns of Tuqu' and Za'atara covering an area of 217,236 dunams (21 km2). Agriculture is the main economic activity of the region, which is located in Area 'C' and falls under the control of the Israel civil administration.

Za'atara (Arabic: زعترة) is a Palestinian town located 11 km (6.8 mi) southeast of Bethlehem. The town is in the Bethlehem Governorate central West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of over 7,849 in 2017.

Tekoa (Hebrew: תְּקוֹעַ) is an Israeli settlement organized as a community settlement in the West Bank, located 20 km northeast of Hebron, 16 km south of Jerusalem and in the immediate vicinity of the Palestinian village of Tuqu'. It falls under the jurisdiction of Gush Etzion Regional Council. In 2021 it had a population of 4,315. The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.

Jannatah (Arabic: جناتة) is a Palestinian town in the central West Bank 5 kilometers (3.1 mi) south of Bethlehem in the Bethlehem Governorate. Nearby villages include Hindaza in the north and Tuqu' to the south. It is situated 570 meters (1,870 ft) above sea level. The total land area is 11,901 dunams of which 319 constitute built-up area and 277 have been confiscated by the Israeli government for settlements and a military base. Much of the remainder is used for arable land.

The murders of Koby Mandell and Yosef Ishran occurred on 8 May 2001, when two Jewish teenagers, Yaakov "Koby" Mandell and Yosef Ishran, were killed on the outskirts of the Israeli settlement of Tekoa in the West Bank, where they lived with their families. The identity of the killers has never been determined, though Israel and a number of sources state that unidentified Palestinian terrorists were responsible.Koby Mandell was an Israeli-American, his family having emigrated from the United States to Israel in 1996, and the murders resulted in legislation by the U.S. Congress aimed at strengthening the U.S. response to the killing of Americans overseas. In response to his death, Koby's parents set up the Koby Mandell Foundation to provide support for families bereaved by terrorist attacks.

Nokdim (Hebrew: נוֹקְדִים, lit. Shepherds) is an Israeli settlement organized as a community settlement in the West Bank. Located south of Bethlehem in the northern Judean Mountains, it falls under the jurisdiction of Gush Etzion Regional Council. In 2021 it had a population of 2,764. The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.A mixed community of religious and secular Jews, both native Israelis and immigrants, Nokdim is home to the religious pre-army Mechina Magen Shaul, established in 1996.

Ma'ale Rehav'am (Hebrew: מַעֲלֶה רְחַבְעָם) is an Israeli outpost in the West Bank, located south of Bethlehem and northeast of Hebron in the northeastern Judean Mountains on Road 3698 in the eastern Etzion bloc. Its mother community, the settlement of Nokdim is administrated by the Gush Etzion Regional Council, which lists Ma'ale Rehav'am as a separate "community" on its official website.The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this. Outposts like Ma'ale Rehav'am, on the other hand, are considered illegal even under Israeli law. Ma'ale Rehav'am was among the outposts the Israeli government pledged to remove under the 2003 Road map for peace. According to IDF sources, demolition orders have been issued for most of the houses, but development has continued.