Ashdod

Ashdod
Basic data
hebrew :	אשדוד
arabic :	إسدود
State :	Israel
District :	south
Founded :	1956
Coordinates :	31 ° 48 ' N , 34 ° 39' E Coordinates: 31 ° 47 '52 " N , 34 ° 39' 1" E
Height :	23 m
Area :	47.2 km²
Residents :	224,628 (as of 2018)
Population density :	4,759 inhabitants per km²
Community code :	0070
Time zone :	UTC + 2
Postal code :	77041, 77042, 77043, 77044, 77046, 77050, 77051, 77060, 77100, 77101, 77102, 77103, 77104, 77105, 77106, 77107, 77109, 77110, 77112, 77113, 77115, 77116, 77117, 77120, 77121 77122, 77123, 77124, 77126, 77130, 77131, 77132, 77133, 77134, 77136, 77140, 77141, 77150, 77151, 77153, 77154, 77160, 77161, 77162, 77163, 77164, 77166, 77167, 77168, 77170 77180, 77181, 77182, 77183, 77185
Community type:	city
Mayor :	Yehiel Lasri
Website :	www.ashdod.muni.il
	Ashdod
	Ashdod

Ashdod ( Hebrew אַשְׁדּוֹד Ašdōd , English Ashdod , Arabic إسدود, DMG Isdūd , ancient Greek Ἄζωτος , Latin Azotus ) is a city in the southern district of Israel with 224,628 inhabitants (2018). It is located south of Tel Aviv on the Mediterranean Sea and is one of the largest cities in Israel.

history

Antiquity

Chastel Béroard in the south of Ashdod

Statue Of Samson In Ashdod

The historical Ashdod goes back to the 14th century BC. It is three kilometers south of the modern city and is already mentioned in the Amarna letters . The archaeologist Juan-Pablo Vita assumes on the basis of paleographic studies that the letters were written by a scribe from Gezer who also worked for the allied rulers of Ginti-kirmil and Gat . However, the tone of the board does not come from Gezer, from which it can be concluded that the letter was written on site.

Ashdod was one of the cities in the Pentapolis of the Philistines (Jos. 13,3). According to biblical representation ( 1 Sam 5,1 EU ) the Philistines took the ark which them from the Israelites had captured over Ashkelon to Ashdod and placed them in the temple of their god Dagon . In the Septuagint and accordingly in the Vulgate , Ashdod has the name form Ἄζωτος or Azotus. There is a titular Roman Catholic bishopric of Azotus of the same name .

The one found in Ashdod, between 1000 and 1100 BC. The clay stand of the musicians of Ashdod , valued in the 4th century BC, shows the most comprehensive representation of a group of musicians in Levantine music history and is the only ensemble representation up to the Hellenistic period.

The Assyrian ruler Sargon II conquered the city in 712 BC. It was settled with deportees headed by an Assyrian šut reši .

From the 7th century Ashdod was an independent city-state ; From the Persian rule in the 6th century, the importance as a port city grew . The settlement can be traced back to the Byzantine period.

middle Ages

In the 12th century, the crusaders of the Kingdom of Jerusalem built the crusader castle Chastel Béroard on today's southern edge of the city , a port fortress whose ruins have been preserved to this day.

Modern times

Before the founding of modern Ashdod there was an Arab village called Isdud (إسدود Isdūd ).

In the Palestine War , Egyptian troops were able to advance there. The Arab village was destroyed during the war.

In 1956, a new reception camp for immigrants was established. In November 1956 the first 22 families from Morocco were accommodated here. In July 1957 a group of immigrants from Egypt followed. After the decision to develop Ashdod as a port, it received the status of a development city . With the new port, the smaller port in Jaffa should be relieved. Construction began in April 1961 and the port was put into operation in November 1965.

In 1959 Ashdod received the status of a local authority and in 1968 that of a city administration .

Off the coast of Ashdod lies the sunk MV Peace , a former cargo ship that served the Voice of Peace radio station as a broadcasting station until October 1, 1993.

On March 14, 2004, a double attack was carried out in the port of Ashdod. The two suicide attacks killed 10 people and sustained 16 life-threatening injuries. The two Palestinian terrorist organizations al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades and Hamas committed themselves to the crime .

The city is protected from rocket fire from the Gaza Strip by the so-called Iron Dome .

Culture

Ashdod is home to the Israeli Andalusian Orchestra , which cultivates the musical traditions that came from Moorish- ruled Spain and later also spread in the Maghreb. In 2006 the Israeli Andalusian Orchestra was awarded the Israel Prize . Ashdod also has a concert and convention center and the Ashdod Art Museum .

In addition, the city is home to a worldwide unique museum about the culture of the Philistines.

port

The port of Ashdod in 2012

Townhouse

New buildings near the marina

The Port of Ashdod opened in 1965 to replace the Port of Tel Aviv . With a throughput of around 18.5 million tons in 2010, it almost reached the transport volume of the port of Haifa . It is Israel's most important port for many goods. It is also a mooring point for yachts and cruise ships.

economy

Of economic importance next to the port also has petroleum industry, the chemical industry , the automotive industry and the diamond grinder eien. There are two oil refineries and the Eshkol power station in the Ashdod area . There are several shopping centers in the city .

In March 2020, the city's tourism chairman published a plan to expand tourism in the city. To build 15 new hotels with a total of 4,000 rooms over the next ten years, as well as a congress hall and a water park. The city currently has only two hotels and three motels with a total of only 400 guest rooms. 1.5 kilometers of the 7.5 kilometer long coastline are affected by the construction projects.

Residents

The population consists predominantly of Israel-born Sabra . One third of Ashdod consists of Jews from the former Soviet Union. Large numbers of Moroccan, Georgian, Ethiopian, French and Argentine Jews also live there. A large number of Hasidim live on the outskirts .

The Israeli Central Statistical Office gives the following population figures for Ashdod in the censuses of May 22, 1961, May 19, 1972, June 4, 1983, November 4, 1995 and December 28, 2008:

Year of the census	1961	1972	1983	1995	2008
Number of inhabitants	4,604	50,345	65,738	125,820	209.238

mayor

2008-present Yehiel Lasri
1989-2008 Zvi Zilker
1983-1989 Aryeh Azulay
1969–1983 Zvi Zilker
1963-1969 Avner Garin
1962–1963 Robert Hayim
1959–1961 Dov Gur

sons and daughters of the town

Absalon (1964–1993), installation artist, video artist and sculptor
Dafna Dekel (* 1966), singer and actress
Haim Revivo (born 1972), football player
Alon Day (* 1991), racing driver

Town twinning

View towards the marina

Ashdod lists eleven twin cities :

city	country	since
Arkhangelsk	Russia Russia	2011
Atyrau	Kazakhstan Kazakhstan	2006
Bahía Blanca	Argentina Argentina	1996
Bahir Dar	Ethiopia Ethiopia	2011
Batumi	Georgia Georgia	2011
Berlin-Spandau	Germany Germany	1968
Bordeaux	France France	1984
Brest	Belarus Belarus	2012
Zaporizhia	Ukraine Ukraine	2011
Tampa	United States Florida, USA	2005
Wuhan	China People's Republic People's Republic of China	2005