Immanuel

Immanuel, (, IPA: i.maˌnuˈel) also spelled Emmanuel or Emanuel, is an Israeli settlement organized as a local council located in the West Bank. Immanuel was established in 1983. In it had a population of ; its jurisdiction is spread out over 2,750 dunams (2.75 km²). The international community considers Immanuel along with all other Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this. History According to ARIJ, in order to construct Immanuel, Israel confiscated land from two nearby Palestinian villages; 951 dunams of land were taken from Deir Istiya, and 163 dunams of land were taken from Immatain. Founded in 1983, the town was named after the symbolic child's name in Isaiah 7:14. Ariel Sharon spoke at its dedication along with a representative of the Gur Hasidim. The building project however was strongly opposed by Lithuanian rabbis in Bnei Brak who believed its establishment was a "provocation to the nations" and Rabbi Elazar Shach issued a ban on buying property there.