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Pisgat Ze'ev (Template:Lang-he, lit. Ze'ev's Peak), is a disputed residential neighborhood with a population of 50,000 located in northeastern Jerusalem. It was established on land annexed by Israel after the Six Day War. The United Nations and European Union consider it an illegal Israeli settlement. Israel and the United States consider it a neighborhood in Jerusalem, and all services are provided by the Jerusalem Municipality. Construction began in 1982, and the first families moved in three years later. Pisgat Ze'ev is situated east of the Arab neighborhood of Shuafat, west of the Arab villages of Hizma and 'Anata, and south of Neve Yaakov.

History

Archeological evidence shows that the region was a major producer of wine and oil for use in the Temple in Jerusalem. Pisgat Ze'ev was established in the 1980s to create a contiguous Jewish link with Neve Yaakov, which had been isolated from other Jewish areas. Pisgat Ze'ev is named after the Revisionist Zionist leader, Ze'ev Jabotinsky. It is one of Jerusalem's ring neighborhoods.Cite error: A <ref> tag is missing the closing </ref> (see the help page).

In the spring of 2004, the Israeli West Bank barrier was built to separate Pisgat Ze'ev and other Jerusalem suburbs from the West Bank. One result was an increase of Palestinians with Jerusalem residency moving into Pisgat Ze'ev, which has a largely homogeneous Jewish population.

Schools and public buildings

With 40 percent of the residents under the age of 21, Pisgat Ze'ev has 58 kindergartens, 9 elementary schools, 2 middle schools and 3 high schools. There are also 22 synagogues and 2 libraries.

Jerusalem light rail system

The Red Line of Jerusalem's new light rail system will run from Pisgat Ze’ev in the northeast, south along Road 1 to Jaffa Road, westward to the Jerusalem Central Bus Station, southwest, crossing the Chords Bridge to the Beit Hakerem neighborhood, and terminating at Mount Herzl, on the outskirts of the Bayit Vegan neighborhood. The project has aroused anger among Palestinians, who say the route trespasses on their land.

Street names

Many of the street names in Pisgat Ze'ev North commemorate leading Israeli personalities, among them Moshe Dayan and Simcha Holtzberg. In the center of Pisgat Ze'ev, many streets are named for Israel Defense Force units that fought in the country's wars. A memorial for fallen soldiers is located in an archeological park in central Pisgat Ze'ev.

Arab-Israeli conflict

A passenger bus leaving the Pisgat Ze'ev terminus was blown up by a Palestinian suicide bomber in May 2003. Seven people were killed in the attack and dozens were wounded. The police said the bomber boarded the bus disguised as a religious Jew, wearing a kippa and a prayer shawl. One of the victims was a resident of the Shuafat refugee camp, on his way to work at the Hadassah Medical Center in Ein Kerem.

See also

• List of places in Jerusalem
• Kubur Bani Yisra’il

References

1. Settlement Monitor 1995, pp. 122-134
2. Municipal services in Jerusalem
3. Jerusalem
4. East Jerusalem, B'Tselem
5. Jerusalem barrier prompts Arabs to move across town Joshua Mitnick, The Washington Times, May 8, 2006
6. Jerusalem
7. Palestinians irate over new Jerusalem light rail
8. Nightmare images from a Jerusalem commuter bus
9. Rich, poor, Arab, Jew - Terror kills without prejudice

External links

• Official website Template:He icon
• Jerusalem Photos Portal - Pisgat Ze'ev

31°49′30″N 35°14′30″E / 31.82500°N 35.24167°E / 31.82500; 35.24167

• Neighbourhoods of Jerusalem