Regional council
Mateh Yehuda Regional Council (Hebrew: מועצה אזורית מטה יהודה, Mo'atza Azorit Mateh Yehuda, Arabic: مجلس إقليمي ماتيه يهودا ) is a regional council in the Jerusalem District of Israel. In 2008 it was home to 36,200 people.
The name of the regional council stems from the fact that its territory was part of the land allotted to the Tribe of Judah, according to the Bible.
Places and communities
The regional council administers moshavim, kibbutzim, Arab villages and other rural settlements in the Jerusalem corridor, north and south of the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv highway, from Jerusalem in the southeast to Latrun in the northwest, and down to the area of Beit Shemesh (Ha'ela Valley) in the south.
The settlements vary greatly in their character. There are religious, secular and mixed Jewish communities, two Arab communities, and the only mixed Arab-Jewish village in Israel - Neve Shalom. Many of the Jewish communities in the Mateh Yehuda district were established by immigrants from India, Yemen, Iraq, Iran and countries in Eastern Europe.
30% of the lands of the Palestinian village of Battir in the West Bank, as well as a few of its buildings,[1][2] lie on the Israeli side of the Green Line. These parts of Battir are nominally within the regional council's area of jurisdiction, but authority over them is exercised by the PA municipality of Battir in practice.
List of villages
- Jewish collective villages (Kibbutzim)
- Jewish cooperative villages (Moshavim)
- Community settlements
- Arab villages
- Arab-Jewish village
- Other settlements
Tourism
The tourist activities in the area include mountain hiking, major sections on the Israel National Trail, biking and historical sight seeing. Other attractions include natural phenomenon as Avshalom stalactites cave and natural water springs. Mate Yehuda is also home to goat cheese farms, over 30 wineries, including award-winning Katlav and Nevo, 11 breweries and dozens of artists.
Partnerships
The regional council has sister city-like partnerships with these municipalities:
The regional council and Beit Shemesh are linked to South Africa and Washington, D.C., in the Partnership 2gether program of the Jewish Agency for Israel.[3]
