Afula

{{Use British English|date=April 2023}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2023}} {{Infobox settlement | name = Afula | native_name = {{Lang|he|{{Script/Hebrew|עפולה}}|rtl=yes}} | settlement_type = City | image_skyline = {{center|{{Photomontage |photo1a = Afula IMG 0889.JPG |photo1b = Afula IMG 0911.JPG |photo2a = Afula city hall.jpg |photo2b = Afula 1.JPG |photo3e = |photo4e = WikiAir_Flight_IL-13-09_022.jpg |size = 280 |color = transparent |border = 0 }}}} | image_blank_emblem = Coat of arms of Afula.svg | blank_emblem_type = Coat of arms | pushpin_map_alt = | pushpin_map = Israel jezreel#Israel | pushpin_mapsize = | pushpin_label_position = | pushpin_map_caption = | coordinates = {{coord|32|36|23|N|35|17|17|E|region:IL|format=dms|display=inline,title}} | grid_name = Grid position | grid_position = 177/224 PAL | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = {{ISR}} | subdivision_type1 = | subdivision_name1 = | subdivision_type2 = District | subdivision_name2 = Northern | established_title = Founded | established_date = 1900 BCE (Canaanite settlement) 7th century (Samaritan town) 14th century (Arab village) 1925–present (Jewish village/city) | leader_title = Mayor | leader_name = Avi Elkabetz{{citation needed|date=July 2022}} | unit_pref = dunam | area_total_dunam = {{formatnum:26909|R}} | population_footnotes = {{Israel populations|reference}} | population_total = 64452 | population_as_of = {{Israel populations|Year}} | population_density_km2 = auto | demographics_type1 = Ethnicity | demographics1_footnotes = {{Israel populations|reference}} | demographics1_title1 = Jews and others | demographics1_info1 = 98.9% | demographics1_title2 = Arabs | demographics1_info2 = 1.1% }}thumb|right|The historic train station of Afula in 2006

'''Afula''' ({{langx|he|עפולה}}) is a city in the Northern District of Israel, often known as the "Capital of the Valley" due to its strategic location in the Jezreel Valley. In {{Israel populations|Year}} the city had a population of 64,452.{{Israel populations|reference}}

Afula's ancient tell (settlement mound) suggests habitation from the Late Chalcolithic to the Ayyubid period. A fortress was built at the site during the Crusader or Mamluk period.

A small Arab Palestinian village during the Ottoman period, it was sold in 1872 along with the entire Jezreel Valley to the Lebanese Sursock family. In 1925, the same area was acquired by the American Zionist Commonwealth as part of the Sursock Purchase. The majority Muslim and Christian population were removed by the family, and Jewish immigrants, marking the foundation of modern Afula. After the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, Afula was settled by Jewish immigrants from Iraq, Yemen and Romania. In 1972, it gained the status of a city. The 1990s saw Jewish immigration from Ethiopia and the former Soviet Union contribute to the growth of the city. Since 1995, the city has almost doubled{{when|date=July 2024}} its population.

==Etymology== The name follows that of the small Arab village which occupied the site until the First World War, possibly originating in the Canaanite-Hebrew root ''ʿofel'' "fortress tower",<ref name= EJ>{{Cite book |chapter=Afulah |title=Encyclopaedia Judaica |via= HighBeam.com |chapter-url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G2-2587500513.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150328143727/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G2-2587500513.html |archive-date=28 March 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> or the Arab word for "ruptured".<ref>Palmer, 1881, p. [https://archive.org/stream/surveyofwesternp00conduoft#page/142/mode/1up 142]</ref>

==History== The ancient mound of ʿAfula, known as Tel ʿAfula, is close to the city center, west of Route 60 and south of Ussishkin Street. Very little of the initial six-acre tell remains due to construction work done in this area since the British Mandate period. The southern peak of the mound is the better preserved part. It was once widely considered to be the biblical site of Ophrah, the hometown of the judge Gideon,<ref>{{Cite web |title=? (Ministry of Tourism document) |url=http://www.tourism.gov.il/GOVheb/Ministry%20of%20Tourism/MoreyDerech/Documents/MOZAR-NOTZRI.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140414153107/http://www.tourism.gov.il/GOVheb/Ministry%20of%20Tourism/MoreyDerech/Documents/MOZAR-NOTZRI.pdf |archive-date=2014-04-14 |access-date=2014-04-13}}</ref> but contemporary scholars generally disagree with this supposition. Archaeological finds date from the Chalcolithic through the Byzantine period, followed by remains from the Crusader and Mamluk periods.<ref name= Pringle/><ref name= Shalev>{{cite journal |first= Yiftah |last= Shalev |title= 'Afula, Tel: Final Report (16/07/2020) |journal=Hadashot Arkheologiyot |publisher=Israel Antiquities Authority |volume= 132 |year= 2020 |issn= 1565-5334 |url= http://www.hadashot-esi.org.il/Report_Detail_Eng.aspx?id=25747 |access-date=27 July 2020}}</ref>

===Bronze Age to Byzantine period=== ʿAfula is possibly the place of Bronze Age ''ʿOphlah'', mentioned in the lists of Pharaoh Thutmose III.<ref name="SWP40">Conder and Kitchener (1882), SWP II, p. [https://archive.org/stream/surveyofwesternp02conduoft#page/40/mode/1up 40].</ref> Zev Vilnay suggested to identify Afula with biblical (Iron Age II) ''Ophel'', mentioned in 2 Kings.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Vilnay |first=Zev |author-link= Zev Vilnay |date=1938 |title=שמות של ישובים עברים על יסוד השמות הערבים |trans-title=Names of Hebrew settlements based on the Arab names |url=https://www.nli.org.il/he/newspapers/dav/1938/04/08/01/article/102?&dliv=none&e=-------he-20--1--img-txIN%7ctxTI--------------1 |access-date=2022-02-16 |website=nli.org.il |lang=he}}</ref> After the destruction of the Kingdom of Israel, the area continued to be inhabited and excavations have revealed artifacts from the periods of Persian and Roman rule.<ref name="Tsafrir">{{cite book |author=Tsafrir, Yoram |last2= Di Segni |first2= Leah |last3= Green |first3= Judith |title= Tabula Imperii Romani: Judaea - Palaestina |publisher= Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities |location= Jerusalem |year= 1994 |page= 67}}</ref>

The first excavations at Tel ʿAfula, carried out in 1948, found Late Chalcolithic–Early Bronze Age remains. Tombs from the Early Bronze Age, Middle Bronze Age II, Late Bronze Age–Iron Age I and Roman period were discovered near the municipal water tower. Archaeologists discovered the Crusader-Mamluk fortress on the southern peak of the tell, a Byzantine olive oil press and evidence of an Early Bronze Age settlement near the northern peak.<ref name="Feig">Feig (2012)</ref>

In 1950–1951, excavations on the northwestern slope of the peak revealed a pottery workshop for Tell el-Yahudiyeh Ware from Middle Bronze Age II and another pottery workshop from Middle Bronze Age I.<ref name="Feig" />

From the 1990s, several small excavations unearthed an uninterrupted sequence of settlement remains from the Chalcolithic until the Late Byzantine periods as well as remains from the Mamluk period.<ref>Dalali-Amos (2009).</ref> In 2012, excavations were conducted by the Israel Antiquities Authority on the southern peak of Tel ʿAfula where the Crusader-Mamluk fortress is located. Due to construction activity from the 1950s, settlement layers on the tell may have been destroyed. Only meager remnants were found, indicative of a settlement from Early Bronze Age I and the Roman period. Pottery from Early Bronze Age III, Iron Age I and a single Hellenistic Attic fragment indicate settlement on the tell in these periods. Fragments of glazed bowls from the 13th century (Mamluk period) were found along the southern edge of the excavation.

===Crusader/Ayyubid and Mamluk periods=== [[File:Afula Fortress P1170741.JPG|thumb|Remains of Crusader fortress in Afula. Note the spolia: Roman sarcophagi as the top layer.]]

At the centre of Tel ʿAfula stand the remains of a 19-metre square fortress from the Mamluk period, possibly first built during the Crusader period.<ref name= Shalev/><ref name=Pringle/> The lower four courses are made of rough boulders, while the top remaining layer is made of reused Roman sarcophagi. The wall is a total of 5.5 meters tall. Pottery remains indicate that it was occupied in the 12th and 13th century.<ref name= Pringle>Pringle (1997), p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=-_NbE5obqRMC&pg=PA18 18].</ref> The gate is dated based on pottery findings to the Mamluk period (13th–14th centuries CE), but as of the end of the 2017 excavation campaign it could not be determined when fortress itself was built, since it is perfectly possible that just the gate was renovated in the Mamluk period; the square shape and the use of Roman sarcophagi as building stones is closely resembling the Crusader tower at Sepphoris.<ref name= Shalev/>

In 1321, ʿAfula was mentioned under the name of ''Afel'' by Marino Sanuto the Elder.<ref name= SWP41>Conder and Kitchener (1882), SWP II, p. [https://archive.org/stream/surveyofwesternp02conduoft#page/41/mode/1up 41].</ref>

===Late Ottoman period=== A map by Pierre Jacotin from Napoleon's invasion of 1799 showed this place, named as ''Afouleh'' in a French transliteration of the Arabic.<ref>Karmon (1960), p. [http://www.jchp.ucla.edu/Bibliography/Karmon,_Y_1960_Jacotin_Map_(IEJ_10).pdf 167] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191222063351/http://jchp.ucla.edu/Bibliography/Karmon,_Y_1960_Jacotin_Map_(IEJ_10).pdf |date=2019-12-22 }}.</ref>

In 1816, James Silk Buckingham passed by and described ''Affouli'' as being built on rising ground and containing only a few dwellings. He noted several other nearby settlements in sight, all populated by Muslims.<ref>Buckingham (1822), vol 2, p. [https://archive.org/stream/travelsinpalest04buckgoog#page/n397/mode/1up 381].</ref>

In 1838, Edward Robinson described both ʿAfula and the adjacent El Fuleh as "deserted".<ref>Robinson and Smith (1841), vol. 3, pp. [https://archive.org/stream/biblicalresearch03robiuoft#page/n180/mode/1up 163], [https://archive.org/stream/biblicalresearch03robiuoft#page/n198/mode/1up 181].</ref> <ref>NB: note that ruined villages were marked with a star in the village lists, however neither Afulah of El Fuleh were marked that way, see: Robinson and Smith (1841), vol 3, 2nd appendix, p. [https://archive.org/stream/biblicalresearch03robiuoft#page/132/mode/1up 132].</ref> William McClure Thomson, in a book published in 1859, noted that ʿAfula and the adjacent El Fuleh were "both now deserted, though both were inhabited twenty-five years ago when I first passed this way." Thomson blamed their desertion on the Bedouin.<ref>Thomson (1859), vol. 2, p. [https://archive.org/stream/landandbookorbi08thomgoog#page/n228/mode/1up 216].</ref>

In 1875, Victor Guérin described ʿAfula as a village on a small hill overlooking a little plain. The houses were built of adobe and various other materials. Around the well, which Guérin thought was probably ancient, he noticed several broken sarcophagi serving as troughs.<ref>Guérin (1880), pp. [https://archive.org/stream/descriptiongogr01unkngoog#page/n122/mode/1up 109]-110.</ref> In 1882, the Palestine Exploration Fund's ''Survey of Western Palestine'' described El ʿAfula as a small adobe village in the plain, supplied by two wells.<ref name= SWP40/>

A population list from about 1887 showed that el ʿAfula had about 630 inhabitants, all Muslim.<ref>Schumacher (1888), p. [https://archive.org/stream/quarterlystateme19pale#page/n208/mode/1up 183].</ref> Gottlieb Schumacher, as part of surveying for the construction of the Jezreel Valley railway, noted in 1900 that it consisted of 50-55 huts and had 200 inhabitants. North of the village was a grain stop, belonging to the Sursocks.<ref>Schumacher, 1900, p. [https://archive.org/stream/quarterlystateme32pale#page/358/mode/1up 358].</ref>

thumb|250px|Old water tower at Afula station

In 1904, the Ottoman authorities inaugurated the Jezreel Valley railway, at first operating between Haifa and Beysan via ʿAfula and soon extended to Dera'a. Work eventually continued with an extension towards Jerusalem, the connection to Jenin being completed in 1913.

====First World War==== {{Main|Capture of Afulah and Beisan}}

During the Great War, ʿAfulah was a major communications hub.{{citation needed|date=October 2021}} In 1917, when Colonel Richard Meinertzhagen from the British intelligence established contact with the Nili Jewish spy network in Palestine, a German Jewish doctor stationed at al ʿAfulah railway junction provided the British with valuable reconnaissance reports on Ottoman and German troop movements southwards.{{cn |date= June 2021}}

With the advance of General Edmund Allenby's British forces into Ottoman Palestine, al ʿAfulah was captured by the 4th Cavalry Division of the Desert Mounted Corps, during the cavalry phase of the Battle of Sharon in September 1918.{{cn |date= June 2021}}

===British Mandate=== According to the British Mandate's 1922 census of Palestine, ''Affuleh'' had 563 inhabitants; 471 Muslims, 62 Christians, 28 Jews and 2 followers of the Baháʼí Faith;<ref>Barron (1923), Table XI, Sub-district of Nazareth, p. [https://archive.org/stream/PalestineCensus1922/Palestine%20Census%20%281922%29#page/n40/mode/1up 38].</ref> 61 of the Christians were Orthodox, while one was Melkite.<ref>Barron (1923), Table XVI, p. [https://archive.org/stream/PalestineCensus1922/Palestine%20Census%20%281922%29#page/n52/mode/1up 50].</ref>

====Jewish Afula (est. 1925)==== In 1925, the area was acquired with money from the American Zion Commonwealth as part of the Sursock Purchase.<ref name= JBG>Glass (2002), p.[https://books.google.com/books?id=dgqj1Ox8StsC&pg=PA219 219].</ref><ref name= Segev242>Segev (1999), p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=lu_nXv6BCwkC&pg=PA242 242].</ref> The Arab tenant farmers were given four years during which they could either buy the land or leave, in the meantime having the right to cultivate it.<ref name= JBG/> A quarter of the one hundred Arab families who had lived in the area accepted compensation for their land and left voluntarily; the remainder were evicted by the new owners.<ref name= Segev242/><ref>130 families, according to the [http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7d/ShawSursockTable.png List of villages sold by Sursocks and their partners to the Zionists since British occupation of Palestine], evidence to the Shaw Commission, 1930.</ref> Jews began settling in Afula shortly after as the town developed, with many American and Polish Jews purchasing the parcels. Many of the Polish Jews who bought land in the town perished in the Holocoaust, and were therefore unable to develop their plots.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The City's History |url=https://www.afula.muni.il/en/180/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250618020604/https://www.afula.muni.il/en/180/ |archive-date=18 June 2025 |access-date=2025-08-07 |website=www.afula.muni.il |language=en |url-status=live }}</ref> Nearby land had been purchased in a similar manner in 1909 or 1910, when Yehoshua Hankin, in his first major purchase in the Jezreel Valley, bought 10,000 dunams (10 km2) of land on which Merhavia and Tel Adashim were to be built.<ref name= Segev242/>

In 1924 former leaders of Hashomer established an arms factory in Afula. Disguised as a farm equipment repair workshop, it produced bullets and weapon parts.<ref>{{cite book |last= Ben Zvi |first= Rahel Yanait |author-link= Rachel Yanait Ben-Zvi |title= Before Golda: Manya Shochat: A Biography |year= 1989 |orig-year= 1976 |contributor=Marie Syrkin |contribution= introduction |translator= Sandra Shurin |publisher= Biblio Press |place= New York |page= 114 |isbn= 0930395077 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aDsdAAAAMAAJ&q=Interchangeable |access-date= 4 June 2025}}</ref>

By the 1931 census, the population had increased to 874; with 786 Jews, 86 Muslims, nine Christians, and three classified as "no religion", in a total of 236 houses.<ref>Mills (1932), p. [https://archive.org/details/CensusOfPalestine1931.PopulationOfVillagesTownsAndAdministrativeAreas 73].</ref>

[[File:1940s Survey of Palestine map of Afula and Merhavya.png|thumb|1940s Survey of Palestine map of ʿAfula and Merhavya]]

In a 1945 survey, the population of ʿAfula was estimated at 2300 Jews and ten Muslims.<ref name= DoS1945>Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics (1945), p. [http://users.cecs.anu.edu.au/~bdm/yabber/census/VSpages/VS1945_p08.jpg 8].</ref> The town had a total of 18,277 dunams of land, according to an official land and population survey.<ref>Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. ''Village Statistics, April, 1945''. Quoted in Hadawi (1970), p. [http://www.palestineremembered.com/download/VillageStatistics/Table%20I/Nazareth/Page-062.jpg 62].</ref> Of this, 145 dunams of land was used to cultivate citrus and bananas, 347 dunams were for plantations and irrigable land, 15,103 for cereals,<ref>Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. ''Village Statistics, April, 1945''. Quoted in Hadawi (1970), p. [http://www.palestineremembered.com/download/VillageStatistics/Table%20II/Nazareth/Page-109.jpg 109].</ref> while 992 dunams were built-up land.<ref>Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. ''Village Statistics, April, 1945''. Quoted in Hadawi (1970), p. [http://www.palestineremembered.com/download/VillageStatistics/Table%20III/Nazareth/Page-159.jpg 159].</ref>

During this time, the community was served by the Jezreel Valley Railway, a side branch of the larger Hejaz Railway. Since 1913 it had also been the terminus station of the branch connecting it to Jenin and later also to Nablus. Sabotage actions of Jewish underground militias in 1945, 1946 and shortly before the 1948 Arab–Israeli War rendered first the connection to Jenin, then progressively the entire Valley Railway, inoperable.{{citation needed|date=February 2015}}

<gallery> File:עפולה - בית השיך-JNF043396.jpeg|Afula, Beit HaSheikh ("House of the Sheikh") 1925 File:מראה עפולה העמק יזרעאל-JNF022193.jpeg|Afula 1928 File:מלון שפירא, בית המלון הראשון בעפולה בעמק יזרעאל-JNF022260.jpeg|Afula, Shapira Hotel 1928 File:תחנת הרכבת בעפולה בעמק יזרעאל-JNF022273.jpeg|Afula railway station 1930 File:AN AERIAL PHOTO OF THE SETTLEMENT AFULA. צילום אויר של היישוב עפולה.D332-060.jpg|Afula 1937 File:יחידות דיור של פועלים בעפולה-JNF014123.jpeg|Workers housing, Afula 1946 </gallery>

===State of Israel=== [[File:Afula 1948.jpg|thumb|Members of Yiftach Brigade from Beisan on leave in Afula in 1948]] thumb|250px|Afula c. 1950

====Railroad (1948-49; 2010s)==== Repairs to the Jezreel Valley Railway after 1948 restored service to Haifa, but only until 1949 when it was abandoned. In 2011, construction began on a large-scale project to build a new standard gauge railway from Haifa to Beit She'an with stations in Afula and other towns, along roughly the same route as the historical valley railway. Israel Railways began passenger service on the new line on October 16, 2016.<ref>Hilley, Yonathan (October 16, 2016). [http://www.maariv.co.il/news/israel/Article-560355 "The Wheels of History: Valley Railway Returns After 64 Years"] [גלגלי ההיסטוריה: אחרי 64 שנים, רכבת העמק שבה לפעילות] (in Hebrew). ''Maariv''. Retrieved October 16, 2016.</ref>

====Terror attacks (1990s-2000s)==== Due to Afula's proximity to the West Bank, it has been a target for Palestinian political violence.<ref>[https://www.questia.com/read/1G1-102083298 "Five die in latest suicide bombing; British bomber dead"]{{Dead link|date=September 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> On 6 April 1994, the Afula Bus suicide bombing killed five people in the center of Afula. In the Afula axe attack in November 1994, a 19-year-old female soldier was attacked and murdered by an axe-wielding Arab Hamas member.<ref>[https://archive.today/20120713091731/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/72300639.html?dids=72300639:72300639&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT "Arab Kills Female Israeli Soldier With Ax"], ''The Washington Post'', 1 December 1994.</ref>

During the Second Intifada, Afula was the target of a suicide attack on a bus on 5 March 2002, in which one person died and several others were injured at Afula's central bus station. In the Afula mall bombing on 19 May 2003, a female suicide bomber blew herself up at the Amakim mall, killing three and wounding 70.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Suicide bomber kills 3 at Israeli mall |url=https://www.capecodtimes.com/story/news/2003/05/20/suicide-bomber-kills-3-at/50952113007/ |work=Cape Cod Times}}</ref> This attack was claimed by the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine and the Fatah movement's Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades.

====2006 Lebanon War==== On 17 July 2006, during the 2006 Lebanon War, Hezbollah fired Katyusha rockets at Afula, one of the southernmost rocket attacks on Israel from Lebanon. Six people were treated for shock as a result of the attack. On 28 July, a rocket landed causing a fire. The rocket carried {{convert|100|kg|0|abbr=off}} of explosives.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Hezbollah Missiles With 100kg Warhead Strike Jezreel Valley|newspaper=Haaretz|url=https://www.haaretz.com/1.4859426|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180518200145/https://www.haaretz.com/1.4859426|url-status=dead|archive-date=18 May 2018}}</ref>

====Recent development plans==== In September 2016, it was announced that seven new neighborhoods would be built, doubling the city's population.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Afula to Double in Size|date=September 14, 2016|website=Hamodia|url=https://hamodia.com/2016/09/14/afula-double-size/|access-date=19 May 2022|archive-date=19 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200219071944/https://hamodia.com/2016/09/14/afula-double-size/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===== "Afula as a Jewish-only city" grassroots campaigns ===== In 2015, a tender of the Israel Land Authority for 27 lots in Afula was won by 45 Arab Palestinian citizens. Following the results, a group of Jewish residents petitioned to cancel the tender, formally citing price coordination but also admitting that the arrival of "a large group of Arab citizens coming to live here together" raised sensitivities in the neighborhood.<ref>[https://news.walla.co.il/item/2913243 Residents petitioned to cancel tender], Walla (in Hebrew)</ref>

In another case in 2018, a Jewish homeowner in Afula refused to rent an apartment to an Arab woman. The Nazareth District Court ruled that the refusal constituted unlawful discrimination on national grounds and ordered him to pay 30,000 NIS in damages, noting that despite the landlord’s claim that he held no racist views, his actions demonstrated anti-Arab bias.<ref>[https://www.mako.co.il/finances-real-estate/Article-efe4d3552a18b71026.htm Court rules in housing discrimination case], Mako (in Hebrew)</ref> Reports in the Israeli press have highlighted the persistence of anti-Arab sentiment in the city.<ref>[https://www.haaretz.co.il/news/education/2018-06-13/ty-article/0000017f-e574-dc7e-adff-f5fdc9ea0000 Haaretz article on Afula protests] (in Hebrew)</ref> Former Afula Mayor Avi Elkabetz joined the protest and said, "the residents of Afula don't want a mixed city, but rather a Jewish city, and it's their right. This is not racism."<ref>{{Cite web |date=June 14, 2018 |title=Hundreds of Israelis Demonstrate Against Home Sale to Arab Family |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2018-06-14/ty-article/.premium/hundreds-demonstrate-against-home-sale-to-arab-family/0000017f-e57e-df5f-a17f-fffe92570000 |website=Haaretz}}</ref><ref>[https://www.haaretz.co.il/gallery/television/tv-review/2019-07-08/ty-article/.premium/0000017f-e6a4-d62c-a1ff-feff31d10000 Haaretz television review on exclusionary discourse] (in Hebrew)</ref>

The land tender sparked protests by local Jewish residents who declared their opposition to Arabs settling in the city. Demonstrators warned that the influx of Arab families would turn the neighborhood into "a village… soon there will be a mosque and a school… where have we come to?" and claimed this would drive Jews to leave Afula.<ref>[https://news.walla.co.il/item/2913243 Residents protest Arab settlement in Afula], Walla (in Hebrew)</ref> Civil society groups condemned the protests as discriminatory and urged the municipality to respect equal rights for all citizens. On 13 June 2018, a demonstration was held in Afula against the sale of an apartment to Arabs, joined not only by residents but also by the city’s deputy mayor. In response, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) sent a letter to the mayor of Afula expressing strong opposition to institutional discrimination, calling on him to take a firm public stance against anti-Arab bias and to address stereotypes and prejudice through educational initiatives for youth in the city.<ref>[https://www.adl.org.il/he/news/%D7%9E%D7%9B%D7%AA%D7%91-%D7%9C%D7%A8%D7%90%D7%A9-%D7%A2%D7%99%D7%A8%D7%99%D7%99%D7%AA-%D7%A2%D7%A4%D7%95%D7%9C%D7%94-%D7%91%D7%A2%D7%A7%D7%91%D7%95%D7%AA-%D7%94%D7%A4%D7%92%D7%A0%D7%AA/ ADL letter to Afula mayor], ADL Israel (in Hebrew)</ref> Additional coverage of these campaigns and the city council’s involvement appeared in the Israeli media.<ref>[https://www.calcalist.co.il/real_estate/articles/0,7340,L-3675422,00.html Calcalist on housing issues in Afula] (in Hebrew)</ref><ref>[https://www.facebook.com/mehazkim/posts/ron-gerlitz%D7%A8%D7%90%D7%A9-%D7%A2%D7%99%D7%A8%D7%99%D7%99%D7%AA-%D7%A2%D7%A4%D7%95%D7%9C%D7%94-%D7%91%D7%97%D7%A8-%D7%90%D7%AA%D7%9E%D7%95%D7%9C-%D7%9C%D7%94%D7%95%D7%91%D7%99%D7%9C-%D7%94%D7%A4%D7%92%D7%A0%D7%94-%D7%A0%D7%92%D7%93-%D7%9E%D7%9B%D7%99%D7%A8%D7%AA-%D7%91%D7%99%D7%AA-%D7%9C%D7%A2%D7%A8%D7%91%D7%99%D7%9D-%D7%91%D7%A2%D7%A4%D7%95%D7%9C%D7%94-%D7%94/658247311287341/ Coverage of mayor’s support for protests], Facebook (in Hebrew)</ref>

In June 2019, a demonstration happened in protest against a house being sold to an Arab family, joined by Afula's mayor, Avi Elkabetz, who had run for office on a platform of "preserving the Jewish character of Afula."<ref>{{Cite web|title=Afula mayor attends demonstration against sale of home to Arab family|date=June 16, 2019|website=Times of Israel|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/afula-mayor-attends-demonstration-against-sale-of-home-to-arab-family}}</ref>

== Demographics == In 2022, 89.5% of the population was Jewish and 10.5% was counted as other.<ref>{{Cite web |title=עפולה |url=https://www.cbs.gov.il/he/publications/DocLib/2024/local_authorities22_1957/%D7%A2%D7%A4%D7%95%D7%9C%D7%94.pdf |access-date=15 July 2025 |website=Central Bureau of Statistics}}</ref>

==Climate== Afula has a Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification: ''Csa''). The average annual temperature is {{convert|20.4|°C|1}}, and around {{convert|468|mm|2|abbr=on}} of precipitation falls annually. {{Weather box | width = auto | metric first = yes | single line = yes | location = Afula (1991–2020) | Jan record high C = 24.7 | Feb record high C = 28.4 | Mar record high C = 37.0 | Apr record high C = 40.9 | May record high C = 43.2 | Jun record high C = 44.1 | Jul record high C = 41.9 | Aug record high C = 41.5 | Sep record high C = 43.2 | Oct record high C = 40.2 | Nov record high C = 35.6 | Dec record high C = 28.8 | year record high C = 44.1

| source 1 = NOAA<ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/4.4/data/0-data/Region-6-WMO-Normals-9120/Israel/CSV/AFULA_NA.csv |title = World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1991-2020 — Afula |publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration |access-date = January 10, 2024}}</ref> |source 2 = World Meteorological Organization (rainfall and rain days 1981–2010)<ref>{{cite web|url = https://worldweather.wmo.int/en/city.html?cityId=1929|title = World Weather Information Service – Afula|publisher= World Meteorological Organization|access-date = November 12, 2022}}</ref> }}

==Economy== thumb|250px|Afula city hall thumb|250px|BIG shopping centerThe '''Alon Tavor Industrial Zone''', located northeast of Afula along Highway 65, is a major hub of manufacturing and industry in the region. Notable companies based there include:

* '''Tadiran''', an air conditioner factory.<ref>{{cite news |last=Weiss |first=Eran |date=4 December 2017 |title=Tadiran inaugurates new Afula factory |url=https://www.globes.co.il/en/article-tadiran-inaugurates-new-afula-factory-1001213010 |access-date=4 September 2025 |work=Globes}}</ref> * '''Keter Plastic''', an Israeli plastics manufacturer.<ref>{{cite news |date=15 February 2015 |title=Keter Plastic expands operations in Israel |url=https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/all-news/keter-plastic-expands-operations-in-israel-390219 |access-date=4 September 2025 |work=The Jerusalem Post}}</ref> * '''StarPlast''', another plastics manufacturing company operating in the zone.<ref>{{cite web |title=StarPlast Israel |url=https://www.starplast.com/our-company/ |access-date=4 September 2025 |publisher=StarPlast}}</ref>

These enterprises provide significant local employment and support the city’s economic base within the Jezreel Valley.

==Education and culture== [[File:PikiWiki Israel 13351 Great Synagogue in Afula.jpg|thumb|250px|Great synagogue of Afula]] thumb|250px|City Auditorium and Art GalleryAccording to the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), as of 2001 there were 24 schools in Afula, serving a total of 8,688 students: 16 elementary schools with 3,814 students and 12 high schools with 4,874 students. In that year, 52.3% of 12th-grade students were eligible for a bagrut (matriculation certificate).<ref>{{cite web |title=Education data for Afula (2001) |url=https://www.cbs.gov.il/he/publications/educ_cities/pages/afula.aspx |access-date=4 September 2025 |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics}}</ref>

Cultural life in Afula includes community events, parks, and leisure programming that contribute to quality of life. The municipality emphasizes the importance of both formal and informal education, aiming to foster academic aspiration, communal values, integrity, and excellence. Sports also play a role as an educational tool to promote healthy lifestyles, teamwork, and civic responsibility.<ref>{{cite web |title=Education Vision |url=https://afula.muni.il/en/214/ |access-date=4 September 2025 |publisher=Afula Municipality}}</ref>

==Health care== Afula’s primary health institution, HaEmek Medical Center, was established on 29 April 1930 following initial planning in 1924.<ref>{{cite web |title=HaEmek Medical Center – History |url=https://hospitals.clalit.co.il/haemek/en/about/Pages/history.aspx |access-date=4 September 2025 |publisher=Clalit Health Services}}</ref> It is a major regional hospital, serving an estimated 700,000 residents from Afula and surrounding areas, with a workforce of around 1,900 employees.<ref>{{cite news |date=29 April 2020 |title=HaEmek Hospital marks 90 years of service |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/haemek-hospital-marks-90-years-of-service/ |access-date=4 September 2025 |work=The Times of Israel}}</ref>

HaEmek is a district general and teaching hospital, affiliated with the Rappaport Faculty of Medicine at the Technion, and is operated by Clalit Health Services.<ref>{{cite web |title=HaEmek Medical Center |url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HaEmek_Medical_Center |access-date=4 September 2025 |publisher=Wikipedia}}</ref> It is also noted as a place of Arab–Israeli coexistence, where personnel from diverse backgrounds work together.<ref>{{cite news |last=Estrin |first=Daniel |date=12 March 2019 |title=Israeli hospital a model of Arab-Jewish coexistence |url=https://apnews.com/article/5d2259c969c84658bdb4eb8f6cf847d0 |access-date=4 September 2025 |work=Associated Press}}</ref>thumb|250px|HaAtzmaut Square

==Sports== The city's basketball club, Hapoel Afula, currently play in the Liga Leumit. The main football club, Hapoel Afula, won Liga Alef in the 2012–13 season and is currently playing in Liga Leumit.

==Twin towns== {| class="wikitable" |- ! City ! State ! Country |- | Ingelheim am Rhein | {{flagicon|Rhineland-Palatinate}} Rhineland-Palatinate | {{flagicon|GER}} Germany |- | Osnabrück | {{flagicon|Lower Saxony}} Lower Saxony | {{flagicon|GER}} Germany |- | Biłgoraj | {{flagicon|Lublin Voivodeship}} Lublin Voivodeship | {{flagicon|POL}} Poland |- | Providence | {{flagicon|Rhode Island}} Rhode Island | {{flagicon|USA}} United States |- | Worcester | {{flagicon|Massachusetts}} Massachusetts | {{flagicon|USA}} United States |- | New Haven | {{flagicon|Connecticut}} Connecticut | {{flagicon|USA}} United States |- | Stamford | {{flagicon|Connecticut}} Connecticut | {{flagicon|USA}} United States |- | West Hartford | {{flagicon|Connecticut}} Connecticut | {{flagicon|USA}} United States |- | Fresno | {{flagicon|California}} California | {{flagicon|USA}} United States |- | Santa Fe | {{flagicon|Santa Fe}} Santa Fe Province | {{flagicon|ARG}} Argentina |- | Mingachevir | {{no flag}} Mingachevir | {{flagicon|AZE}} Azerbaijan |- | San Fernando | {{flagicon|O'Higgins}} O'Higgins Region | {{flagicon|CHI}} Chile |}

==Notable people==

*Mosh Ben-Ari (born 1970), musician, lyricist and composer *Amir Blumenfeld (born 1983), writer, comedian, actor, and television host *Yaakov Bodo (born 1931), actor and comedian *Dina Doron (born 1940), actress *Sarit Hadad (born 1978), singer *Eden Kartsev (born 2000), football player *David Kushnir (born 1931), Olympic long-jumper *Hila Lulu Linn (born 1964), artist *Nikol Reznikov (born 1999), model and Miss Universe Israel 2018 *Samuel Scheimann (born 1987), football player * Dagan Yivzori (born 1985), basketball player * Vini Vici (Matan Kadosh & Aviram Saharai) (born 1983 & 1985), DJ/producer duo

==References== {{Reflist|25em}}

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==External links== {{Wikivoyage|Afula}} *[https://web.archive.org/web/20130627225645/http://www.afula.muni.il/English.html Afula municipal website] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20160304070119/http://147.237.248.50/reader/pop_in_locs/pop_in_locs_e.html?MIval=%2Fpop_in_locs%2Fpop_in_locs_e.html&Name_e=AFULA Central Bureau of Statistics, Afula] *Survey of Western Palestine, Map 8: [http://www.iaa-archives.org.il/zoom/zoom.aspx?folder_id=93&type_id=6&id=8389 IAA], [http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Survey_of_Western_Palestine_1880.08.jpg Wikimedia commons] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20141022054211/http://ru.afula.muni.il/ Afula municipal website on russian lang/] *[https://www.nli.org.il/en/maps/NNL_MAPS_JER002714130/NLI#$FL10589809 Air-photo of Afula with index, 1946] - Eran Laor Cartographic Collection, The National Library of Israel

Category:Canaanite cities Category:Books of Kings locations Category:Populated places established in 1925 Category:Jewish villages in Mandatory Palestine Category:1925 establishments in Mandatory Palestine Category:Cities in Northern District (Israel) Category:Jezreel Valley