Jenin

Jenin is a 4000-year-old city in northern Palestine, it is located on the edge of a level plain known to the locals as Marj Ibn Amer and mentioned in the Bible as Jezreel Valley. Modern Jenin is a picturesque town surrounded by olive and almond groves. Its fertile surroundings were a perfect place to settle as early as the Canaanite times when it was called En Gannim meaning ‘the spring of gardens. ‘Through the Jenin Region’s almond groves, Ottoman-era palaces, Byzantine churches, Mediterranean landscapes, windy mountain peaks, and hidden Roman ruins, the stories of the landscape become clear.

Jenin played an important role in the past as the city on the crossroads between the sea and the northern and eastern regions of the country. The historical Via Maris route passed through this area, as well as other internal routes connecting the mountains to the coast. On the top of neighboring Mt. Gerizim, the Samaritans, a tiny group once nearly extinct, preserve their religion and priesthood on their holy mountain. Across the city of Nablus, between the modern buildings, can be found remains of the once-great Roman city of Neapolis.