Betar Illit (ביתר עילית; unofficially also spelled Beitar Illit -- Illit is pronounced: Eeleet) is an Israeli town in Gush Etzion, a group of villages and towns in the Northern Judea region of the West Bank. The town was established in 1985 and, as of June, 2005, had a total population of 25,700.[1] Gush Etzion (Hebrew גוש עציון, literally bloc of the tree) is a group of Israeli settlements in the northern Judea region of the West Bank. ... Judea or Judaea (יהודה Praise, Standard Hebrew , Tiberian Hebrew ) (Greek: Ιουδαία) is a term used for the mountainous southern part of the historic Land of Israel (Hebrew: ארץ ישראל Eretz Yisrael), an area now divided between Israel and the West Bank, and, in a few geographical definitions of Judea, Jordan. ...

Demographics

According to Israel Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), in 2001 the ethnic makeup of the city was 100.0% Jewish, consisting of 8,900 males and 8,400 females. The predominantly Haredi population of the city was spread out with 62.9% 19 years of age or younger, 18.1% between 20 and 29, 14.6% between 30 and 44, 3.4% from 45 to 59, 0.4% from 60 to 64, and 0.7% 65 years of age or older. The population growth rate in 2001 was 9.6%. Israel Central Bureau of Statistics (הלשכה המרכזית לסטטיסטיקה) is a state organization for the creation and maintenance of numeric data related to populations vis-à-vis the ethnic makeup of Israel and its cities. ... Jews (Hebrew: יהודים, Yehudim) are followers of Judaism or, more generally, members of the Jewish people (also known as the Jewish nation, or the Children of Israel), an ethno-religious group descended from the ancient Israelites and converts who joined their religion. ... Haredi or Charedi Judaism, often referred to as Ultra-Orthodox Judaism, is the most theologically conservative form of Orthodox Judaism. ...

Income

According to CBS, as of 2000, in the city there were 2,172 salaried workers and 131 are self-employed. The mean monthly wage in 2000 for a salaried worker in the city is ILS 3,079, a real change of 3.6% over the course of 2000. Salaried males have a mean monthly wage of ILS 4,475 (a real change of 7.2%) versus ILS 2,173 for females (a real change of -0.7%). The mean income for the self-employed is 4,438. There are 99 people who receive unemployment benefits and 671 people who receive an income guarantee. 1 sheqel coin (1994–5). ...

Education

According to CBS, there are 26 schools and yeshivas and 3,225 students in the city. They are spread out as 22 elementary schools and 3,019 elementary school students, and 4 high schools and 206 high school students. ..% of 12th grade students were entitled to a matriculation certificate in 2001. Yeshiva or yeshivah (Hebrew: ישיבה pl. ...

See also

• Betar (fortress), the last Jewish fort held in the Bar Kochba revolt
• Battir, an Arab village adjacent to Betar Illit and the Betar ruins.

Betar was the last standing Jewish fortress in the Bar Kochba revolt of the 2nd century CE, destroyed by the Roman army on Tisha Bav. ... Bar Kokhba’s revolt (132-135 CE) against the Roman Empire, also known as The Second Jewish-Roman War or The Second Jewish Revolt, was a second major rebellion by the Jews of Iudaea. ... Battir, Palestine Battir lies perhaps five miles west of Bethlehem as the crow flies, but access is circuitous. ...

External links

• Official site
• Israel announces plans for hundreds of new homes in Jewish settlements. Associated Press article mentioning Beitar Illit.
• Betar Illit settlement Expansion and The Fate of Wadi Fukin Village. Applied Research Institute—Jerusalem.