Be'er Ya'akov

File:Be'er Ya'akov railway station.JPG]]

Be'er Ya'akov was established in 1907 on 2,000 dunams of land purchased by a company headed by Meir Dizengoff from a Lutheran German colony the previous year. It was divided into two sectors, one for immigrants from Russia, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Argentina, and Iran, and the other for Mountain Jews from Dagestan. It was named after Yaakov Yitzhaki, a rabbi and pioneer from the Mountain Jewish community.{{cite book |title=Lexicon of the Land of Israel |publisher=Miskal - Yedioth Ahronoth Books and Chemed Books |language=he |year=1999 |first=Immanuel |last=HaReuveni |isbn=965-448-413-7 |page=76}} Yitzhaki headed the Mountain Jewish pioneers who settled there.

In 1909, 25 families were living in Be'er Ya'akov, and tensions existed between the Ashkenazi and Dagestani families.{{cite news |last=Munzik |first=Eliyahu |date=July 29, 1909 |newspaper=Hapoel Hatzair |title=ישבנו החדש |language=he |trans-title=We Have Returned in Be'er Ya'akov |url=http://jpress.org.il/Olive/APA/NLI_Heb/SharedView.Article.aspx?parm=%2F0Rmc58rlIiyP%2BJnBfSTpUI655h4ZgTEIIKwqDtGB%2BW2Gcltxd8P%2BBN9gXAXSh%2B7Yw%3D%3D&mode=image&href=HHR%2f1909%2f07%2f29&page=9&rtl=true |access-date=April 24, 2019}} In 1910, the first elementary school was established. According to a census conducted in 1922 by the British Mandate authorities, Be'er Ya'akov had 131 inhabitants,{{cite web|url=https://archive.org/details/PalestineCensus1922|title=Palestine Census ( 1922)|access-date=28 December 2017|via=Internet Archive}} which had increased in the 1931 census to 265 residents in 58 houses.Mills, 1932, p. [https://archive.org/details/CensusOfPalestine1931.PopulationOfVillagesTownsAndAdministrativeAreas 18] By 1947, it had a population of 400.{{cite book |title=Jewish Villages in Israel |author=Jewish National Fund |year=1949 |publisher=Hamadpis Liphshitz Press |location=Jerusalem |pages=14}} It achieved local council status in 1949.

File:Er Ramle 1941.jpg

File:El Ramle 1945.jpg

During the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, and until the Israeli capture of Ramla in July 1948, Be'er Ya'akov was on the front line. The population at that time was evacuated and a new settlement, Be'er Shalom, was established nearby by members of Kibbutz Buchenwald, the first pioneer training group formed in post-World War II Germany.Jewish National Fund, p191[http://www.biu.ac.il/JS/ti/baumel.htm Kibbutz Buchenwald, Judy Baumel] Bar Ilan University

In 2017, a plan was approved to build on the land vacated by the Tzrifin military bases which are being relocated to the Negev. The plan envisions Be'er Ya'akov with a population of 100,000.{{cite news |url=https://www.haaretz.com/haaretz-labels/israeli-realestate/1.5723940 |title=Part 3 – Southern Israel's Boom Towns |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=28 December 2017 }}{{cite news |last=Chudy |first=Ori |url=https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-beer-yaakov-to-become-city-of-100000-1001192495 |date=June 14, 2017 |title=Beer Yaakov to become a city of 100,000 |newspaper=Globes |access-date=April 24, 2019}} Be'er Ya'akov is currently undergoing a construction boom, with numerous residential and commercial developments planned or under construction, along with numerous schools and daycare centers, cultural institutions, and a 1,000-seat sports arena. A metro system for the city which will terminate at Ben Gurion International Airport is also planned, with work scheduled to commence in 2028.[https://www.timesofisrael.com/from-fields-to-high-rises-beer-yaakov-turns-into-a-young-and-vibrant-city/ From fields to high-rises, Be’er Yaakov turns into a ‘young and vibrant city’]

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IAI's MLM Division, Israel's main missile assembly facility is located in the south of Be'er Ya'akov. The Jericho and Arrow missiles and the Shavit launch vehicle are assembled there. The facility area is situated east of Diezengoff Street.{{cite web | url=https://www.iai.co.il/about/groups/systems-missiles-space | title=Systems Missiles Space | IAI }}

Two hospitals are located in Be'er Ya'akov: Yitzhak Shamir Medical Center (near Tzrifin), and Shmuel HaRofe Geriatric Hospital.

• Maccabi Be'er Ya'akov is the local football club.
• Maccabi Be'er Ya'akov B.C., the local basketball club, plays in Liga Leumit, the second tier.

Be'er Ya'akov is served by the Be'er Ya'akov Railway Station, for trains on the Binyamina-Ashkelon line.

• Ron Atias, taekwondo athlete who represented Israel at the 2016 Summer Olympics
• Noam Dar, professional wrestler
• Moshe Peretz, singer
• Yaakov Yitzhaki, founder of the settlement of the city Be'er Ya'akov
• Idan Zalmanson (born 1995), basketball player

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Category:Jewish villages in Mandatory Palestine

Category:Populated places established in 1907

Category:1907 establishments in the Ottoman Empire

Category:Cities in Israel