Eilat

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Eilat
View of Eilat
Emblem of Eilat
Eilat
District	South
Government	City (from 1959)
Hebrew	אֵילַת (help·info)
Arabic	ايلات
Population	65,000 [1] (2007)
Area	84,789 dunams (84.789 km2; 32.737 sq mi)
Mayor	Meir Yitzhak Halevi
Founded in	1951
Coordinates	29°33′N 34°57′E / 29.55°N 34.95°E / 29.55; 34.95Coordinates: 29°33′N 34°57′E / 29.55°N 34.95°E / 29.55; 34.95

Eilat (Hebrew: אֵילַת‎ (audio) (help·info)) is Israel's southernmost city, a busy port as well as a popular resort, located at the northern tip of the Red Sea, on the Gulf of Eilat. Home to 65,000 people,^[2] the city is part of the Southern Negev Desert, at the southern end of the Arava. The city is adjacent to the Egyptian village of Taba to the south, the Jordanian port city of Aqaba to the east, and within sight of Saudi Arabia to the south-east, across the gulf.

Eilat's arid desert climate is moderated by proximity to a warm sea. Temperatures often exceed 40 °C (104 °F) in summer, and 18 °C (64 °F) in winter, while water temperatures range between 20 and 26 °C (68–79 °F). The city's beaches, nightlife and desert landscapes make it a popular destination for domestic and international tourism.

Archaeology and history

Despite harsh conditions, the region supported large populations as far back as 8,000 BCE.

Beginning in 1861 ancient sites have been recorded throughout the region, but to date only around 7% of the area has undergone a detailed archaeological survey with around 1500 ancient sites recorded in a 1,200-square-kilometre (460 sq mi) area. In contrast to the gaps found in settlement periods in the neighbouring Negev Highlands and Sinai, these sites show continuous settlement for the past 10,000 years.

The geology and landscape are varied: igneous and metamorphic rocks, sandstone and limestone; mountains up to 892 metres (2,930 ft) above sea level; broad valleys such as the Arava, and seashore on the Gulf of Aqaba. With an annual average rainfall of 28 millimetres (1.1 in) and summer temperatures of 40 °C (104 °F) and higher, water resources and vegetation are limited.

"The main elements that influenced the region's history were the copper resources and other minerals, the ancient international roads that crossed the area, and its geopolitical and strategic position. These resulted in a settlement density that defies the environmental conditions."^[3]

Early settlement

The original settlement was probably Eilat ^[4] at the northern tip of the Gulf of Aqaba.^[5]

Archaeological excavations uncovered impressive prehistoric tombs dating to the 7th millennium BCE at the western edge of Eilat, while nearby copper workings and mining operations at Timna Valley are the oldest on earth. Ancient Egyptian records also document the extensive and lucrative mining operations and trade across the Red Sea with Egypt starting as early as the Fourth dynasty of Egypt.

Eilat is mentioned in antiquity as a major trading partner with Elim, Thebes' Red Sea Port, as early as the Twelfth dynasty of Egypt.^[6] Trade between Elim and Eilat furnished Frankincense and Myrrh, brought up from Ethiopia and Punt; Bitumen and Natron, from the Dead Sea; finely woven Linen, from Byblos; and copper amulets, from Timnah; all mentioned in the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea.

In antiquity Eilat bordered the states of Edom, Midian and the tribal territory of the Rephidim, the indigenous inhabitants of the Sinai.

Biblical references

Eilat is first mentioned in the Bible in the Book of Exodus in the stations. The first six stations of the Exodus are in Egypt. The 7th is the crossing of the Red Sea and The 9th-13th are in and around Eilat after they have left Egypt and crossed the Red Sea. Station 12 refers to a dozen campsites in and around Timna in Modern Israel near Elat.

When King David conquered Edom, which up to then had been a common border of Edom and Midian, he took over Eilat, the border city shared by them as well. The commercial port city and copper based industrial center were maintained by Egypt until reportedly rebuilt by Solomon at a location known as Ezion-Geber (I Kings 9:26).

In 2 Kings 14:21-22: "And all the people of Judah took Azariah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in the room of his father Amaziah. He built Elath, and restored it to Judah, after that the king slept among his fathers." And again in 2 Kings 16:6: "At that time Rezin king of Aram recovered Elath to Aram, and drove the Jews from Elath; and the Edomites came to Elath, and dwelt there, unto this day".

Roman and Moslem periods

A glimpse of blue waters from the Darb el Hajj - today Ovda - approach to Eilat

During the Roman period a road was built to link the area with the Nabataean city of Petra (modern-day Jordan). The remains of a large copper smelting and trading community which flourished during the Ummayad Period (700-900 CE) were also found between what is now Eilat's industrial zone and nearby Kibbutz Eilot.

The Darb el Hajj or "Pilgrim's Road", from Africa through Egypt to Mecca, passed out of Sinai from the west at Eilat before skirting the sea and continuing south into Arabia.

Modern settlement

The area of Eilat was designated as part of the Jewish state in the 1947 UN Partition Plan. During the War of Independence an old Ottoman police station, called Umm Rashrash in Arabic, was taken without a fight on March 10, 1949 as part of Operation Ovda, in which both the Negev and Golani Brigades participated. (Only one of Umm Rashrash 's mud-brick buildings remains standing, in a tiny park.) Having forgotten to bring an Israeli flag with them, the Negev Brigade soldiers improvised and raised the "Ink Flag" in order to claim for Israel the area upon which Eilat would be constructed. The Timna Copper Mines were opened and a port constructed, the Eilat Ashkelon Pipeline laid, and tourists began visiting. The Port of Eilat became vital to the fledgling country's development.

Eilat Skyline

After the 1948 Arab-Israeli War the Arab countries maintained a state of hostility with Israel, blocking all land routes; Israel's access to and trade with the rest of the world was by air and sea alone. Further, Egypt denied passage through the Suez Canal to Israeli-registered ships or to any ship carrying cargo to or from Israeli ports. This made Eilat and its sea port crucial to Israel's communications, commerce and trade with Africa and Asia, and for oil imports. Without recourse to a port on the Red Sea Israel would have been unable to develop its diplomatic, cultural and trade ties beyond the Mediterranean basin and Europe. This happened in 1956 and again in 1967, when Egypt's closure of the Straits of Tiran to Israeli shipping effectively blockaded the port of Eilat. In 1956 this led to Israel's participation in the Sinai Campaign along with the U.K. and France, and in 1967 was cited by Israel as an additional casus belli leading to the outbreak of the Six-Day War.

Open borders

Following peace treaties signed with Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994, Eilat's borders with its neighbors were finally opened. In 2007, over 200 Sudanese refugees from Egypt who arrived in Israel illegally on foot were given work and allowed to stay in Eilat.^[7][8][9] Eilat's population includes a large number of foreign workers, estimated at over 10,000, working as caregivers, hotel workers and in the construction trades.

Eilat as seen from Aqaba, Jordan, across the gulf.

Transportation

Eilat is connected to the rest of Israel and internationally by air, road and sea.

• Eilat Airport is located in the city centre and is used largely for domestic flights^[10] (IATA: ETH, ICAO: LLET).
• International flights often use Ovda International Airport some 50 kilometres (31 mi) northwest of the city^[11](IATA: VDA, ICAO: LLOV).

Eilat has two main roads connecting it with the center of Israel.

• Egged, the national bus company, provides regular service to points north on an almost hourly basis as well as in-city on a half-hourly basis during daylight hours.
• There are two main border crossings: the Taba Border Crossing to Taba, Egypt and Wadi Araba Crossing to Aqaba, Jordan, re-named the Yitzhak Rabin Border Crossing on the Israeli side.

The Port of Eilat and Eilat Marina allow travel by sea.

Near-term plans also call for a rail link to substantially decrease travel times from Eilat to Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, via the existing line at Beer Sheba; planning is underway.

Economy

In the 1970s tourism became increasingly important to the city's economy as other industries shut down or were drastically reduced. Today tourism is the city's major source of income, although Eilat became a free trade zone in 1985.^[12]

Tourism

Coral World Underwater Observatory.

Eilat offers a wide range of accommodations - from hostels to luxury hotels - as well as many unique attractions and recreational options within a 50 kilometer (31 mile) radius.

• Bedouin hospitality.
• Birdwatching and ringing station: Eilat is located on the main migration route between Africa and Europe.
• Camel tours.
• Coral Beach Nature Reserve, an underwater marine reserve of tropical marine flora and fauna.
• Coral World Underwater Observatory - allows visitors to view marine life in its own habitat. The park, located at the southern tip of Coral Beach, has aquariums, a museum, simulation rides, and shark, turtle and stingray tanks.^[13]
• Diving: Skin and SCUBA diving, with equipment for hire on or near all major beaches. Scuba diving equipment rental and compressed air are available from a number of diving clubs and schools open all year round.
• Dolphin Reef, offering visitors an opportunity to swim and interact with dolphins, is also a marine biology and research station.^[14]
• Freefall parachuting.
• Hai-Bar Yotvata Nature Reserve, established in the 1960s to conserve endangered species, including Biblical animals, from this and similar regions. The reserve has a Visitors Center, care and treatment enclosures, and large open area where desert animals are acclimated before re-introduction into the wild. Hai-Bar efforts have successfully re-introduced the Asian Wild Ass, or Onager, into the Negev.^[15] The Hai-Bar Nature Reserve and animal re-introduction program were described in Bill Clark's book "High Hills and Wild Goats: Life Among the Animals of the Hai-Bar Wildlife Refuge". The book also describes life in Eilat and the surrounding area.^[15]

Capra ibex nubiana, a resident of Hai-Bar

• IMAX theatre.
• Kings City, a biblical theme park located in the hotel area next to the Stella Maris Lagoon.^[16]
• Marina with some 250 yacht berths.
• Timna Valley Park - the oldest copper mines in the world. Egyptian temple of Hathor, King Solomon's Pillars sandstone formation, ancient pit mines and rock art.^[17]
• "What's Up" the Observatory in Eilat, a portable Astronomical Observatory with programs in the desert and on the promenade.^[18]

Sister cities

• Antibes, France^[19]
• Juan-les-Pins, France^[19]
• Arica, Chile^[20]
• Durban, South Africa^[21]
• Smolyan, Bulgaria^[22]
• Kamen, Germany^[23]
• Kampen, Netherlands
• Toronto, Canada^[19]
• Los Angeles, United States^[19]
• Ushuaia, Argentina^[19]
• Piešťany, Slovakia
• Sopron, Hungary

Eilat has streets named after Durban, Kamen, Kampen and Los Angeles as well as a Canada Park. Several Maple trees also grow in various parts of the city.

An Eilat beach with Aqaba, Jordan across the Red Sea, against the backdrop of the Edomite Mountains.

Climate

Gallery

A winter's twilight.	Raising the Ink Flag.	Amram's Pillars.	At Coral Beach.
Eilat North Beach hotel area

See also

• Eilat (destroyer)
• Eilot (kibbutz)
• Eilat Airport
• Eilat International Film Festival
• Eilat bakery bombing
• Ezion-Geber
• Operation Ovda
• Ovda International Airport
• Port of Eilat
• Taba Border Crossing
• Yotvata Airfield
• Timna
• Eilat stone

Trivia

• Pete Seeger recorded Road to Eilat in Hebrew ("Hey Daroma" - היי דרומה).

References

External links

• Official city site (Hebrew)
• Eilat Tourism site
• Eilat International Film Festival
• Eilat Tourist directory
• A film about Eilat in 1960 commentary (Hebrew)
• Dolphin Reef Eilat
• Photos of Eilat
• Coral Beach in southern Eilat
• Tourism city guide site
• Eilat Today, a magazine of current affairs

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