The Yesha Council of Jewish Communities in Judea and Samaria has published a new, colorful, 3-D map of Israel, topographically depicting the dangers of a Palestinian state overlooking Tel Aviv.
If a picture is worth a thousand words, then the feeling at the Yesha Council is that a 3-D map is worth a million words – and can explain with a glance how Judea and Samaria tower above the Gush Dan (Tel Aviv) area of Israel, in which live millions of Israelis.
Similarly, the Golan Heights are clearly shown towering above the Galilee, just as the mountains of Jordan stand much higher than the Jordan Valley. The surrounding of Jerusalem on three sides by PA-controlled areas is also plainly depicted.
The map is being or will be disseminated by mail, in schools, and elsewhere, and a Powerpoint presentation is in the works as well.
Yesha Council Director-General Naftali Bennet says, “The map is designed to make clear to the citizens of greater Tel Aviv that Judea and Samaria is not far away, but rather overlooks their back yards. Most of the population is unaware of this, because maps are generally two-dimensional. Residents of Kfar Saba and Raanana might not be happy to find themselves literally under the thumb of a State of Palestine, and it’s time they knew of this danger.”
Work is underway on an English version of the map. The Hebrew edition is currently available; see
The flip-side of the map contains the following 11 points that the Yesha Council feels must be emphasized: The area of Judea and Samaria comprises 23% of the State of Israel. The area is full of cities and sites from various periods in Jewish history, including Hevron, the Herodion, Beit El, Shilo, Shechem, etc. Some 330,000 Jews live in Judea and Samaria, divided approximately equally among hareidim, religious-Zionist, and secular. Only 3% of the area of Judea and Samaria is built up. Areas of Judea and Samaria surround Jerusalem on three sides. 43% of Judea and Samaria are under either full Palestinian Authority control or administrative PA control. Over 90% of the Arabs in Judea and Samaria live under PA control and vote for the PA parliament. The mountains of Judea and Samaria are the central mountain range of the Land of Israel, running 140 kilometers from the Jezreel Valley in the north to the Arad Valley in the Negev. The width of the Judea and Samaria mountains is 55 kilometers, and the width of Israel’s coastal plane near Tel Aviv is only 16 kilometers. Yesha’s main north-south route, Highway 60, is also the national watershed line, and runs mostly along the same route taken by the Patriarchs in the Bible. The mountain aquifer, which supplies half of Israel’s water, is in Judea and Samaria.
Baruch atem b'Shem, Yeshua
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