Haifa - City of Israel

Haifa is the largest city in Northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country. Haifa has a mixed population of Jews and Arabs. It is also home to the Bahá'í World Centre, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Haifa, built on the slopes of Mount Carmel, has a history dating back to Biblical times. The earliest known settlement in the vicinity was Tell Abu Hawam, a small port city established in the Late Bronze Age . In the 3rd century CE, Haifa was known as a dye-making center. Over the centuries, the city has changed hands: It has been conquered and ruled by the Byzantines, Arabs, Crusaders, Ottomans, Egyptians, and the British. Since the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, the city has been governed by the Haifa Municipality.

A small port city, Tell Abu Hawam, existed in the Haifa region in the Late Bronze Age . The geographer Scylax describes a city "between the bay and the Promontory of Zeus" which may be a reference to Haifa in the Persian period. The city moved to a new site south of what is now Bat Galim, in Hellenistic times, after the old port became blocked with sand.The city is first mentioned in Talmudic literature around the 3rd century CE, as a small fishing village and the home of Rabbi Avdimos and other Jewish scholars.

The city's Crusader fortress was destroyed in 1187 by Saladin.In 1265, the army of Baibars the Mamluk captured Haifa, destroying its fortifications, which had been rebuilt by King Louis of France, as well as the majority of the city's homes in order to prevent the return of European Crusdaders from re-invading. As such, for much of their rule, the city was desolate for much of the Mamluk period of governance between the 13th and 16th centuries.Information from this period is very scarce.


Many of Wadi Salib's historic Ottoman buildings have been demolished throughout the course of Israeli rule, and in the 1990s a major section of the Old City was destroyed to make way for the municipal center.

In 2006, Haifa was hit by 93 Hezbollah rockets during the conflict with Lebanon killing eleven civilians in the city, and leading to half of the city's population fleeing after the first week of the war.The oil refinery complex was also struck by a rocket.

Haifa has a mediterranean climate with hot, humid summers and cool, rainy winters .Spring arrives in March when temperatures begin to increase. By late May, the temperature has warmed up considerably to herald warm summer days.

Located in the Haifa district are the Ein Hod artists' colony, where over 90 artists and craftsmen have studios and exhibitions, and the Mount Carmel national park, with caves where Neanderthal and early Homo Sapiens remains were found.

A 2007 report commissioned by the Haifa Municipality calls for the construction of more hotels, a ferry line between Haifa, Acre and Caesarea, development of the western anchorage of the port as a recreation and entertainment area, and an expansion of the local airport and port to accommodate international travel and cruise ships.

Despite its image as a port and industrial city, Haifa is the cultural hub of northern Israel. During the 1950s, mayor Abba Hushi made a special effort to encourage authors and poets to move to the city, and founded the Haifa Theatre, a repertory theater, the first municipal theater founded in the country. The principal Arabic theater servicing the northern Arab population is the al-Midan Theater. Other theaters in the city include the Krieger Centre for the Performing Arts and the Rappaport Art and Culture Center.The Congress Center hosts exhibitions, concerts and special events.

Haifa is home to two internationally acclaimed universities and several colleges. The University of Haifa, founded in 1963, is at the top of Mt. Carmel. The campus was designed by the architect of Brasilia and United Nations Headquarters in New York, Oscar Niemeyer. The top floor of the 30-story Eshkol Tower provides a panoramic view of northern Israel. The Hecht Museum, with important archeology and art collections, is on the campus of Haifa University. The Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, described as Israel's MIT, was founded in 1924. It has 18 faculties and 42 research institutes. The original building now houses Haifa's science museum. The first technological high school in Israel, Basmat, was established in Haifa in 1933.