About the Triangle


Tishreen operates in the "Triangle" region, home to about 300,000 Arab-Palestinian citizens of Israel. The Triangle region borders the Separation Wall and the West Bank to its east, and the localities of central Israel to its west. It extends from the city of Umm al-Fahm in the north and the city of Kfur-Qasem in the south. The Triangle region moved into Israeli jurisdiction as part of the Rhodes 1949 armistice agreement. Although the shape of this area does not resemble a triangle (and it looks more like a crescent), it is called the "Triangle" because of the "Big Triangle" appellation given during the British Mandate for the cities of Jenin, Nablus and Tulkarm, cities which are adjacent to the ‘green-line’ in the West Bank, near the border with the ‘Triangle’. The number of the Triangle residents in 1948 stood at 35,000 individuals and has since grown by 625%.

A fifth the of Israel’s Palestinian citizens live in the Triangle, all of which are Muslim. The Triangle has 14 Arab local authorities which are disproportionately economically disadvantaged in comparison to most local authorities across the country. Most local authorities in the Triangle rank within the lowest socio-economic clusters, clusters 2-4 out of 10.

The Arab community that lives in the Triangle region endures land confiscation, inequitable administration, home demolitions, systematic attacks on their civil rights, and racial incitement. The main source of income for local residents prior to 1948 was land and agriculture. In the aftermath of the 1948 war, the local farmers saw the majority of their land expropriated. The collapse of their main sources of livelihood, the sharp transition from rural farming to wage earning and to urban development, together with ongoing discriminatory policies, unequal allocation of resources, and constant marginalization of Palestinian culture and identity, all contributed to weakening the people of the Triangle region on all levels – economically, culturally, politically and socially.