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Druze villages
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Yirca
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Spread over 3,950 acres is the Galilean local council of Yirka, the home of 13,000 members of the Druze community. The village was founded in the 11th century, in the time of the propagation of the Druze faith, and the descendants of some of the early apostles still reside there. The village was named after Hushai of Archi, the counselor of King David, whose tomb is located here and visited by Druze and Jews alike. In 1948, during the War of Independence, Druze from across the Galilee flocked to Yirka. As many as 50,000 people resided in makeshift homes in the village during that time. After Independence most refugees returned to their villages or settled in nearby settlements. The village was declared a local council in 1959. Today the village is home to a large young population, with 50% of the residents being younger than 18. Up until the early 1960s most residents were peasants; the main source of income was the cultivation of olives and - to a lesser extent - various segments of dryland agriculture. In 1957, as military service became mandatory for the Druze, the villagers began to leave agriculture in favor of employment within the defense forces. In the early 1970s industry first appeared in the village in the form of a heavy metals plant that employed some 400 men. Other factories and stores soon followed, gradually employing women as well. In 1989 the regional trade and industry plan for Yirka was enacted, and local entrepreneurs were encouraged to set up businesses in the industrial park; this part of the village is today considered the largest, most developed industrial area in the non-Jewish sector. Some 3,000 persons from Yirka and its environs are employed there. Village authorities emphasize the education of the younger generation and actively support the talent of local youth. Four elementary schools, a junior high school and four high schools (among which is a regional sciences high school) serve the village.
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