Nokdim

Nokdim Hebrew: נוֹקְדִים‎, lit. Shepherds) is a communal settlement and Israeli settlement in the West Bank, located south of Bethlehem in the northern Judean hills. The mixed community of religious and secular Jews, both native Israelis and immigrants with a population of 1,757 (2015) is within the municipal jurisdiction of the Gush Etzion Regional Council.

The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.

Nokdim is home to the religious pre-army Mechina Magen Shaul, established in 1996.

History

Nokdim was founded on July 5, 1982, by residents of Tekoa. The settlement was originally named El-David in memory of two residents of Tekoa - Eli Pressman, a new immigrant from France who was killed in the 1982 Lebanon War, and David Rosenfeld, manager of the tourist site at Herodium who was murdered in July 1982 by two of his Palestinian employees. The name was rejected by the government naming committee who suggested the name Nokdim, which was accepted by the settlers.

The name is taken from the Bible (Amos 1:1) because of nearby settlement of Tekoa: "...Amos, who was among the shepherds of Tekoa".

Land dispute

A 2006 Peace Now-report said that up to 30 percent of the land Nokdim is built on is privately owned, all or most of it by Palestinians. According to Israeli law, settlements on privately owned Palestinian land are illegal. However, in the data provided by the Civil Administration, "there is no mention of whether the private land is owned by Palestinians or by Jews... Nevertheless, it is highly probable that most of the land that is marked here as private land (if not all of it) is privately owned Palestinian land."

Israeli–Palestinian conflict

In September 2001, Sarit Amrani (26) of Nokdim was shot dead in Tekoa when people opened fire on her family's car. Her husband Shai was seriously injured, while their three children, Zohar (4), Ziv (2) and Raz (3 months), who were in the car at the time of the shooting survived physically unharmed.

In February 2002, Aharon Gorov (46) and Avraham Fish (65) were killed in a shooting attack between Nokdim and Tekoa. Fish's daughter Tamar Lipschitz, who was nine months pregnant, was shot in the stomach. After being rushed to the hospital, she delivered a daughter through Caesarean section. Fish's granddaughter, Karine (4), suffered from shock. Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades claimed responsibility.

Notable residents

• Avigdor Lieberman, Israel's current foreign minister