Qarawat Bani Hassan

Infobox Palestinian Authority muni
name=Qarawat Bani Hassan


imgsize=250
caption=
arname=قرواة بني حسن
meaning="Hospitality of the Hassan tribe"
founded=1948
type=mund
typefrom=
altOffSp=Qarawet Bani Hassan
altUnoSp=Qarawat Bani Hasan
governorate=sl
population=3,700
popyear=2006
area=9,684
areakm=9.7
mayor='Abd al-Majid Mari [ [http://www.nablus.org/en/htm/guide/Municipalities.htm Municipalities] Nablus Municipality]

Qarawat Bani Hassan ( _ar. قرواة بني حسن) is a Palestinian town in the Salfit Governorate, located thirty kilometers southwest of Nablus and seven kilometers northwest of Salfit in the northern West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of over 3,700 inhabitants in mid-year 2006. [ [http://www.pcbs.gov.ps/Portals/_pcbs/populati/pop05.aspx Projected Mid -Year Population for Salfit District by Locality 2004- 2006] Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics]

It's total land area is 9,684 dunams, of which 507 dunams is built-up area. Since the 1995 Interim Agreement on the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, 10.7% of its municipal jurisdiction is under the civil administration of the Palestinian National Authority and the security of Israel, while 89.2% is under complete Israeli control. [ [http://www.poica.org/editor/case_studies/view.php?recordID=1126 New House Demolitions Threats in Qarawat Bani Hassan village] Applied Research Institute - Jerusalem. 2007-08-05.]

History

Qarawat Bani Hassan contains the remains of an old Roman castle and Roman and Byzantium tombs. Amr ibn al-A'as, a prominent Arab commander of the Rashidun army, was said to have been injured in the village. According to local tradition, a tree was planted on the spot where his blood was spilled. The story was written up in the village history in the year 1919. [http://www.iwps.info/en/articles/article.php?id=123 Qarawat Bani Hassan Village Profile] International Women's Peace Service.]

Qarawat Bani Hassan was founded in 1948, after the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. Initially, at the beginning of the conflict, some residents of the Arab town of Kafr Bara fled to the farther part of Kafr Bara's land. There they established a new town. [ [http://www.poica.org/editor/case_studies/view.php?recordID=1141 Qarawet Bani Hassan] Land Research Center. 2007-08-26.]

Economy

Prior to the Second Intifada, about 50% of the Qarawat Bani Hassan's residents of working age were employed. About 40% worked in Israel and 10% in other work inside the village. Today, 10% of the working population worked in agriculture, 10% in Israeli settlements, and 10% as traders and store merchants.

Primary agricultural products include olives, wheat, almonds, figs. Olive oil is the main product and the village produces an average of 102,000 litres of oil per year. Its inhabitants mostly export to Jordan.

Government

Qarawat Bani Hassan is governed by a village council of nine members. Each three members represent one of the three families of the village: 'Asi, Mar'ai and Rayan. Local elections do not take place, but family heads select their representatives. Israel is in charge of security affairs and the Palestinian National Authority is responsible for civil affairs of the village. However, agricultural land is under the complete control of Israel.

References