Founded 1998 | Population (2015) 719 | |
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Weather 9°C, Wind NE at 5 km/h, 90% Humidity | ||
Brukhin (Hebrew: ברוכין) is an Israeli settlement, which started as an illegal outpost and was retroactively legalized in 2012. It is located in the West Bank's Samarian mountains about thirty km east of Tel Aviv along the Trans-Samaria Highway near the Palestinian town Bruqin and between the Ariel settlement and Rosh HaAyin.
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Map of Bruchin
The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.
Over 101 Orthodox Jewish families are living in Brukhin. A further 100 families are due to move in as the settlement expands (2015). In 2015 its population was 719.
History
Brukhin was founded in 1998 on non-private land claimed as state land by Israel as a trailer neighbourhood, and developed by one of the founding members, Amishai Shav-Tal, in October 2000, within the territory administered as part of its municipality by the Shomron Regional Council. The Sasson Report established that the Brukhin outpost was an unauthorized Israeli settlement. The report also said that $785,000 was spent on Brukhin's infrastructure and public buildings. Construction in the village was frozen in 2012 by an order from the Israeli High Court. In 2012 the Israeli state provided the illegal outpost with official authorization.
Popular culture
In July 2015, a "come and join" video was released on YouTube featuring a song sung by the families of Brukhin.