Twenty minutes south of Jerusalem, \"the City of Torah in the Hills of Judea,\" Betar Illit, has now grown so large it is officially a city, thanks to the signature of the commander of the central region, Maj.-Gen. Yitzhak Eitan. Betar is now the third city in Judea, Samaria and Gaza (Yesha), following Ma\'aleh Adumim, and Ariel. A municipality is generally reclassified as a city once it has more than 15,000 residents. The designation is more than a great honor for the city, says acting mayor Rabbi Akiva Horowitz. \"Now,\" he explains, \"the city can attract more investors, Torah institutions and residents. In addition, government ministries are more sympathetic to the needs of cities, as opposed to municipal councils.\"
Founded in 1990, Beitar has become a center of Israel\'s hareidi religious Jews, along with Bnei Brak, Jerusalem and Kiryat Sefer. Thirty percent of the men in the community study full-time in kollelim (religious seminaries for married men). Betar Illit currently has more than 18,000 residents and will be absorbing another 8,000 in the coming months. Rabbi Horowitz sees the tremendous success of the city, over the course of only ten years, as a testimony to the positive Hareidi commitment to strengthening the Jewish communities of Judea and Samaria.
Founded in 1990, Beitar has become a center of Israel\'s hareidi religious Jews, along with Bnei Brak, Jerusalem and Kiryat Sefer. Thirty percent of the men in the community study full-time in kollelim (religious seminaries for married men). Betar Illit currently has more than 18,000 residents and will be absorbing another 8,000 in the coming months. Rabbi Horowitz sees the tremendous success of the city, over the course of only ten years, as a testimony to the positive Hareidi commitment to strengthening the Jewish communities of Judea and Samaria.