Back Dætumpalmaburh ANG دير البلح Arabic دير البلح ARZ Deir al-Balah Catalan Dayr al Balaḩ CEB Dajr al-Balah Czech Deir al-Balah Welsh Deir al-Balah Danish Deir al-Balah German Ντέιρ αλ-Μπάλαχ Greek
Deir al-Balah | |
|---|---|
| Arabic transcription(s) | |
| • Arabic | دير البلح |
| • Latin | Deir el-Balah (unofficial[citation needed]) Dayr al-Balah (official) |
 Skyline of Deir al-Balah, 2008 | |
 | |
  Deir al-Balah Location of Deir al-Balah within Palestine | |
| Coordinates: 31°25′08″N 34°21′06″E / 31.41889°N 34.35167°E | |
| Palestine grid | 088/092 |
| State |  State of Palestine |
| Governorate | Deir al-Balah |
| Founded | 14th century BC |
| Government | |
| • Type | City (from 1994) |
| • Head of Municipality | Imad al-Jarou[1] |
| Area | |
| • Total | 14,735 dunams (14.7 km2 or 5.7 sq mi) |
| Population (2017)[2] | |
| • Total | 75,132 |
| • Density | 5,100/km2 (13,000/sq mi) |
| Name meaning | "Monastery of the Date Palm" |
Deir al-Balah or Deir al Balah (Arabic: دير البلح, lit. 'Monastery of the Date Palm') is a Palestinian city in the central Gaza Strip and the administrative capital of the Deir al-Balah Governorate of the State of Palestine. It is located over 14 kilometers (8.7 mi) south of Gaza City.[3] The city had a population of 75,132 in 2017.[2] The city is known for its date palms, after which it is named.
Deir al-Balah dates back to the Late Bronze Age when it served as a fortified outpost for the New Kingdom of Egypt. A monastery was built there by the Christian monk Hilarion in the mid-4th century AD and is currently believed to be the site of a mosque dedicated to Saint George, known locally as al-Khidr. During the Crusader-Ayyubid wars, Deir al-Balah was the site of a strategic coastal fortress known as "Darum" which was continuously contested, dismantled and rebuilt by both sides until its final demolition in 1196. Afterward, the site grew to become a large village on the postal route of the Mamluk Sultanate (13th-15th centuries). It served as an episcopal see of the Greek Orthodox Church of Jerusalem in Ottoman times until the late 19th century.
Under Egyptian control Deir al-Balah, whose population tripled through the influx of refugees from the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, was a prosperous agricultural town until its capture by Israel in the Six-Day War. After 27 years of Israeli occupation, Deir al-Balah became the first city to come under Palestinian self-rule in 1994. Since the outbreak of the Second Intifada in 2000, it has witnessed frequent "incursions" by the Israeli Army with the stated aim of stopping Qassam rocket fire into Israel.[4][5][6] Ahmad Kurd, a Hamas member, was elected mayor in late January 2005.[7][8]
- ^ "عماد الجرو يتسلم رئاسة بلدية دير البلح خلفا لـ"سعيد نصار"". amad.com.ps (in Arabic). Amad. 12 June 2020. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ a b Preliminary Results of the Population, Housing and Establishments Census, 2017 (PDF). Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) (Report). State of Palestine. February 2018. pp. 64–82. Retrieved 2023-10-24.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Sharon11was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "US Calls on Israel to Withdraw". BBC News. 2001-08-28. Retrieved 2007-05-08..
- ^ "Fresh incursion in Gaza". BBC News. 2002-02-14. Retrieved 2007-05-08..
- ^ "A New Role for Hamas: Running Gaza's Cities". The New York Times. 2005-05-27. Retrieved 2007-05-09.
- ^ "Hamas Dominates Local Vote in Gaza". The Washington Post. 2005-01-29. Retrieved 2010-05-01.
- ^ Scott Wilson (2005-09-05). "Israeli Pullout Creates Political Opportunity: Shift of Gaza Land and Assets to Palestinians Sharpens Hamas-Fatah Rivalry". The Washington Post. p. A25. Retrieved 2007-05-21.
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