Bethlehem Governorate

The Bethlehem Governorate (Arabic: محافظة بيت لحم‎ Muḥāfaẓat Bayt Laḥm; Hebrew: נפת בֵּית לֶחֶם Nafat Beit Leḥem) is one of 16 Governorates within the Palestinian territories. It covers an area of the West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Its principal city and district capital is Bethlehem. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, its population was estimated to 199,463 in 2012.^[1]

Geography

According to United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the governorate has a total area of around 660 km².^[2] Because of the occupation by Israel, Palestinians can only use 13% of the area and much of that is fragmented as of May 2009.^[2]

Politically, the Bethlehem Governorate is something of a stronghold of the Palestinian left. At the Palestinian legislative election, 2006 the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and The Alternative both had their best votes there. Its current governor is Salah al-Tamari.

The governorate consists of 10 municipalities, 3 refugee camps, and 58 rural districts.

v t e Bethlehem Governorate

Cities	Beit Jala Beit Sahour Bethlehem (Beit Lahm)

Municipalities	Battir Beit Fajjar al-Dawha Husan al-Khader Nahalin Tuqu' al-Ubeidiya Za'atara

Villages	'Arab al-Rashayida Artas al-Asakra Beit Ta'mir Dar Salah Hindaza Jab'a Jannatah Jubbet ad-Dib Juhdum Jurat ash Sham'a Khallet al-Haddad Khallet al-Louza Khallet Sakariya Khirbet al-Deir Kisan al-Ma'sara al-Maniya Marah Ma'alla Marah Rabah Rakhme Umm Salamuna ash-Shawawra Wadi al-Arayis Wadi Fukin Wadi an-Nis Wadi Rahhal al-Walaja

Refugee camps	Aida 'Azza Dheisheh

v t e Governorates of the Palestinian National Authority

West Bank	Jerusalem (al-Quds) Bethlehem Hebron Jenin Jericho Nablus Qalqilya Ramallah and al-Bireh Salfit Tubas Tulkarm

* Gaza Strip	Deir al-Balah Gaza Khan Yunis North Gaza Rafah

^Since June 2007, the Gaza Strip has been under de facto* Hamas governance.

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