Kafr Qaddum

Kafr Qaddum appeared in 1596 Ottoman tax registers as being in the Nahiya of Jabal Qubal of the Liwa of Nablus. It had a population of 19 households and 2 bachelors, all Muslim. The villagers paid taxes on wheat, barley, summer crops, olives, and goats or beehives, and a press for olives or grapes; a total of 4,700 Akçe.[8]

In 1838, Kefr Kaddum was noted as a village located in the District of Jurat 'Amra, south of Nablus.[9]

In 1852, it was by noted Biblical scholar Edward Robinson on his travels in the region,[1] and in 1882 the PEF's Survey of Western Palestine (SWP) the village (called Kefr Kaddum) was described as "A good-sized village on low ground, with wells and olives; it has a watch-tower on the side of the chalk hill rising over it on the east, and is supplied by wells; the houses are of stone."[10]

In a 1922 census of Palestine conducted by the British Mandate authorities, Kufr Qaddum had a population of 874 inhabitants, all Muslims,[11] increasing in the 1931 census to 963, again all Muslim, in 234 houses.[12]

In the 1945 statistics the population was 1,240, all Muslims,[13] with 18,931 dunams of land, according to an official land and population survey.[14] Of this, 2,945 dunams were for plantations or irrigated land, 7,184 for cereals,[15] while 69 dunams were built-up (urban) land.[16]

In the wake of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, and after the 1949 Armistice Agreements, Kafr Qaddum came under Jordanian rule.

The Jordanian census of 1961 found 1,701 inhabitants.[17]

Demonstration against road block, Kafr Qaddum, March 2012

Since the Six-Day War in 1967, Kafr Qaddum has been under Israeli occupation.

After the 1995 accords, 44.6% of village land was classified as Area B, while the remaining 55.4% was classified as Area C. Up until 2013 Israel had confiscated 2,031 dunums of village land for the Israeli settlements of Kedumim Zefon, Jit (Mitzpe Yishai), and Giv'at HaMerkaziz; presently all part of Kedumim.[18]

Since 2003, the road between Kafr Qaddum and Nablus is blocked thus elongating the travel distance by 14 km. Since July 2011, weekly demonstrations have been held in a demand to re-open the road.

In the Mitzpe Yishai neighborhood of Kedumim, there are accusations that the Israelis have improperly taken control of private Palestinian land. The Israeli Civil Administration calls it "theft", though it occurred in an "orderly manner", but without any official authorization.[19]

In 2003, the Israeli military closed the main entrance of the village that connects it to Nablus with a permanent roadblock, in addition, a dirt mound was put one kilometer before the roadblock, isolating one family house which made it unreachable by vehicles. In 2010, after waiting for five years for an Israeli court decision, it was ruled that the roadblock is illegal, but the court also stated that the road is "too dangerous to travel" so the road remained blocked.

The roadblock makes it difficult for people to reach their farmlands because they are prohibited from driving, so they must walk on foot and carry their equipment and harvest. It also delays the fifteen minute journey to Nablus to forty minutes.[20][21]

• In 2012, an Israeli soldier was under investigation for the theft of a large sum of money and gold from during a raid against a resident of Kafr Qaddum.[22]
• On 2 January 2014, 85-year-old Saeed Jaser Alim became the "first Palestinian casualty of conflict with Israel in 2014; he died following a clash with Israeli soldiers at Kafr Qaddum near Nablus". Villagers say Israeli soldiers fired teargas canisters at them, one of which entered his home, and he subsequently died.[23]
• In January 2014, a large force of Israeli soldiers entered the village in the middle of the night, seeking "two wanted men", who turned out to be two boys, aged 11 and 13. As they were leaving, they threw stun grenades into the yards of the homes they passed.[24]
• In December 2014, Bashar Saleh was shot in the leg while standing with his camera in a group of journalists.[6]
• In October 2015 Ahmed Tala’at, a photographer, was shot in the backside while standing with a group of journalists, armed only with his cameras and a gasmask.[6]
• Muayyed Shteiwi, a nurse, who brandishes a Palestinian flag at demonstrations, was shot near the groin and in the back when, hearing noises of confrontation, he left the yard of a mosque to observe what was happening.[6]
• In March 2016 an Israeli border policeman shot Khaled Shteiwi (11) in the leg. When an adult villager came to assist him, he too was shot by another soldier.[6]
• In July 2019, Abdel Rahman Shteiwi, aged 10, was shot in the head while watching a demonstration that was taking place 200 metres from his friend's home. He has since been confined to a wheelchair.[6]
• On February 15 2020, a day no demonstrations took place Mohammed Shteiwi (14), hiding in a grove when soldiers arrived, took a head shot from a soldier firing a plastic-coated metal bullet at close range. He had peeked out to check out what was going on, and now lies in a vegetative state.[6]
• In August 2020, Israeli placed three boxes containing explosive devices in the village.[25] One of them was found by a child and lightly injured an adult when he shook it.[25] An army source said that the boxes were placed "for deterrence".[25]