Qiryat Gat
Qiryat Gat, commonly spelled
Kiryat Gat (), is a city in the
Southern District of
Israel. According to the
Israel Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), at the end of 2004 the city had a total population of 47,800.
The city name refers to
Gath - one of five major
Philistine cities - because archeologists found the ruins of a Philistine site mistaken for Gat in the area. The real Gat was later found some 20km further south. West of the city lie the ruins of the abandoned town of Al-Faluja, a minor Arab town that fell into decrepitude after the
1948 Arab-Israeli War and the subsequent founding of modern Israel. There is some debate surrounding the nature of the departures of most of Al-Faluja's Arab residents. Some accounts pointed to a harassment campaign by the
Israel Defense Forces (IDF), and it is quite likely that many Arab residents were pressured to leave by Israeli forces, the unfortunate side-effect of years of Arab aggression.
According to CBS, in 2001 the ethnic makeup of the city was all
Jewish and other non-Arabs, without significant
Arab population. In 2001 there were 463 immigrant settlers. See
Population groups in Israel.
According to CBS, in 2001 there were 23,500 males and 24,700 females. The population of the city was spread out with 35.7% 19 years of age or younger, 14.9% between 20 and 29, 18.5% between 30 and 44, 15.8% from 45 to 59, 3.8% from 60 to 64, and 11.3% 65 years of age or older. The population growth rate in 2001 was 0.8%.
Qiryat Gat is a home for an
Intel chip production factory. This new and modern
high tech factory is a main employment source in the area. An additional
Intel factory is expected to be built also in Qiryat Gat.
According to CBS, as of 2000, in the city there were 15,257 salaried workers and 1,152 are self-employed. The mean monthly wage in 2000 for a salaried worker in the city is
NIS 4,125, a real change of +4.9% over the course of 2000. Salaried males have a mean monthly wage of NIS 5,199 (a real change of +7.3%) versus NIS 2,956 for females (a real change of -1.8%). The mean income for the self-employed is 5,494. There are 1,336 people who receive unemployment benefits and 6,487 people who receive an income guarantee.
According to CBS, there are 25 schools and 10,676 students in the city. They are spread out as 18 elementary schools and 5,498 elementary school students, and 13 high schools and 5,178 high school students. 54.7% of 12th grade students were entitled to a matriculation certificate in 2001.
*
Kiryat-Gat - Intel chip plant located on disputed Israeli land*
Kiryat-Gat online - unofficial city website
