Efrat (Israeli settlement)

Efrat (Hebrew: אֶפְרָת), or previously officially Efrata (Hebrew: אֶפְרָתָה), is an Israeli settlement in the West Bank, established in 1983 in the Judean Mountains. Efrat is located 12 kilometers (7.5 mi) south of Jerusalem, between Bethlehem and Hebron, 6.5 km (4 mi) east of the Green Line, at the Palestinian side of the West Bank wall. The settlement stands at an altitude of up to 960 metres (3,150 feet) above sea level and covers about 6,000 dunam (1,500 acres). The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.

Considered the capital of Gush Etzion, it had a population of 12,114 in 2024. Although geographically located within Gush Etzion, it is independent from the Gush Etzion Regional Council, and Palestinians in negotiations do not consider it as part of that block, since it lies to the east of Route 60 — their side of the Geneva Initiative map. From November 2008 to March 2024, Oded Revivi, an attorney and lieutenant colonel in the army and member of the Likud Central Committee, was the head of Efrat regional council. He was beaten in a closely contested municipal election by longtime council member Dovi Shefler, who took office as Mayor of Efrat on April 1, 2024.

Etymology

Efrat is named after the biblical place Ephrath. While according to the Israeli Ministry of the Interior, "Efrata" is the quotation from the Biblical verse, and therefore the town's name, Efrata's residents and municipality have maintained for many years that the reference isn't the location's name, but rather means "towards Efrat".