Immanuel (town)

Infobox Israel municipality
name=Immanuel

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imgsize=250px
caption=Headquarters of Immanuel Local Council
hebname=Hebrew|עִמָּנוּאֵל
arname=
meaning=God is with us
founded=
type=lc
typefrom=
stdHeb=
altOffSp=
altUnoSp=
district=js
population=2,700
popyear=2006
area_dunam=2750

mayor=Yeshayahu Ehrenreich

Immanuel ( _he. עִמָּנוּאֵל) is an Israeli settlement and local council in Samaria, West Bank.

According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Immanuel had a population of 2,600 at the end of 2004, mostly Haredi Orthodox Jews. Its jurisdiction is 2,750 dunams (2.75 km²).

Immanuel was declared a local council in 1985. Its first head of council was Oded Alon. Immanuel's current head of council is Yeshayahu Ehrenreich.

In the 1990s, Immanuel was undergoing a major expansion, but the Oslo Accords discouraged investors and construction firms from continuing to build. As a result, a major portion of present-day Immanuel consists of unfinished structures and concrete. Land value is also extremely low, often four to six times lower than in central Israeli towns and cities.

While Immanuel has a modest light industrial area which provides work for Israelis and Palestinians, there is otherwise not much local employment opportunities that are not related to education or Torah, therefore many of its residents commute to nearby Ariel, Jerusalem and Bnei Brak/Petah Tikva.

In 2002 the town was the site of a terrorist attack on innocent civilians, which claimed nine lives. [ [http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/MFAArchive/2000_2009/2002/7/Terrorist%20attack%20on%20bus%20at%20Emmanuel%20-%20July%2016-%20200 Terrorist attack on bus at Emmanuel] ]

References