| Kafr Qaddum | |
|---|---|
| Other transcription(s) | |
| • Arabic | كفر قدوم |
| • Also spelled | Kafar Qaddum (official) Kafr Kadum (unofficial) |
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Kafr Qaddum
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| Coordinates: | |
| Governorate | Qalqilya |
| Government | |
| • Type | Village Council |
| Area | |
| • Jurisdiction | 18,943 dunams (18.9 km2 / 7.3 sq mi) |
| Population (2006) | |
| • Jurisdiction | 4,500 |
Kafr Qaddum (Arabic: كفر قدّوم) is a Palestinian town in the northern West Bank, located 13 kilometers west of Nablus and 17 kilometers east of Qalqilya in the Qalqilya Governorate. Surrounding towns include Jit to the east and Hajjah to the south. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), the town had a population of approximately 3,500 inhabitants in mid-year 2006.[1]
Kafr Qaddum's total land area consists of nearly 19,000 dunams (about 8,000 under Palestinian civil administration and 11,000 under complete Israeli control).[2] Its built-up area consists of 529 dunams. Olive groves make-up 80% of the remaining land, 15% is used for vegetation purposes, 5% are planted crops.[3]
Prior to the Second Intifada, about 50% of the Kafr Qaddum's economy depended on work in Israel as the primary source of income, 20% depended on agriculture and animal raising, while 30% depended on jobs in private and public sectors. After 2002, over 75% of the population became jobless as business became the only other alternative for income generation. Emigration has registered a record level during the past two years ranging between 10-15 % of the total population.[3]
Locals believe that the Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) was circumcised in the village using an axe (Qaddum) hence the name would mean "town of the Axe". To this day, there is a shrine in Kafr Qaddum called (the shrine of the Khalil), Khalil meaning friend, as the prophet Ibrahim was named the friend of Allah..[4]
Another theory is that the word "Qaddum" is a mispronounced "Qaddama" meaning "ahead" or "advanced".
Attorneys Michael Sfard and Shlomi Zecharia of Yesh Din, who represent the Palestinian landowners from Kafr Qaddum exposed the Israeli settler method of taking over Palestinian privately owned land. In the case of Mitzpe Yishai neighborhood of the Kedumim where the West Bank Israeli settlement have expanded their jurisdictions by taking control of private Palestinian land and allocated it to Israeli settlers. The land takeover, which the Civil Administration calls "theft", occurred in an orderly manner, without any official authorization. Official records show the land as belonging to Palestinians from Kafr Qaddum.[5]
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