Bethlehem meaning "House of Bread" is a town of the West Bank, 5 miles south of Jerusalem and just off the main road to Hebron. It is surrounded by fertile lands, cornfields, fig and olive yards and vineyards. Bethlehem does not have a great supply with water, though for many centuries the a low level aqueduct from Solomon's Pools has been used by the inhabitants. Bethlehem was the birthplace of Jesus[1][2] and the location of Herod's "massacre of the innocents".[3]
In 2012 the Church of the Nativity, the site where Jesus was born and undoubtedly one of the most important locations on earth, was finally deemed a World Heritage Site by UNESCO a whole 36 years after World Heritage Sites began getting named.[4]
Categories: [Israeli Cities and Towns] [Biblical Places]