Metzad

Metzad (Hebrew: מיצד‎), also Asfar, is an Israeli settlement organised as a communal settlement in the Gush Etzion settlement bloc in the West Bank. Established as by ultra-orthodox Jews in 1984, it is located south of Bethlehem in the eastern Judean Mountains, 14.5 km from the Green Line, outside the Separation Barrier. In 2014 its population was 535. It falls under the municipal jurisdiction of the Gush Etzion Regional Council.

The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.

History

Metzad was established in 1984 by immigrants from the United States, the United Kingdom, South Africa and France. The settlement was built on the site of a Nahal paramilitary outpost called Nahal Asfar established in 1983, and which Palestinians state was confiscated from the village of Ash-Shuyukh. The first structures on Metzad were erected by the Israel Defense Forces's civil corps of engineers. They were handed over for civilian use at the time of the creation of Metzad in 1984. Initially, the road up to the settlement was unpaved, water was brought by truck, and electricity was sporadically provided by a generator.