Tzova (Kibbutz)

Kibbutz Tzova lies in the Judean Hills west of Jerusalem, off Road 395 and southwest of Mevasseret Zion.[1][2] It is listed among the localities of the Jerusalem metropolitan area and forms part of the Jerusalem Corridor.[5][3] The corridor is a roughly triangular region connecting Jerusalem to the Coastal Plain, bounded by the old Jerusalem road to the north, the HaElah Valley to the south, and the Shaar HaGai–Beit Shemesh route to the west.[3] Other settlements named along corridor routes include Ramat Raziel, Kiryat Anavim, Even Sapir, Ora, Aminadav, Beit Zayit, and Mevasseret Zion.[3]

The kibbutz stands on and around Mount Tzova, at 769 meters above sea level.[1] Within its boundaries are Tel Tzova, a historic site and nature reserve; Ein Tzova, an ancient spring; and the remains of the Crusader fortress of Belmont.[2][4] The surrounding landscape preserves evidence of ancient agriculture, including terraces, water systems, and approximately thirty winepresses of varying sizes.[6]

A Ynet travel account dates the beginning of settlement at Tel Tzova to the 12th–10th centuries BCE and identifies its name with Yigal ben Nathan of Zobah, one of King David's heroes in II Samuel 23.[2] Artifacts at the site have been dated to 586 BCE, while another travel account describes remains of a Jewish community as dating to the days of Joshua; the latter identification should be understood as a reported historical interpretation rather than a conclusive archaeological determination.[7]

The Crusaders constructed the fortress of Belmont—meaning “beautiful mountain”—on the hill above the spring. Ynet dates its construction to 1176 and says it was positioned to oversee the surrounding area and other fortresses, rather than directly command the road to Jerusalem.[2] Another account states that Salah a-Din conquered the fortress about twenty years after its construction.[7] The Arab village of Suba, which preserved the ancient name Tzova, later existed at the site until 1948.[2]

Accounts of the 1948 fighting and the departure of Suba's residents differ. A Ynet account says the village was captured by Palmach forces during Operation Dani.[2] On October 19, 1948, a small group of discharged Palmach soldiers founded Kibbutz Palmach Tzova, pitching tents west of the former village.[1][8] During the kibbutz's first year, Ein Tzova was its only water source. For approximately twelve months, a settler used a mule and cart to haul a large drum of spring water to the settlement each day, although the supply remained insufficient and residents took turns bathing at the spring.[8]

A National Library of Israel catalog record dates a photograph of the kibbutz's cowshed to June–August 1950.[9] The library also catalogs Reuven Kliphon's 55-page Hebrew book צובה ההיסטורית (Historical Tzova), published by Palmach-Tzova and dedicated to kibbutz members on the community's 40th anniversary.[10]

By 2009, Tzova was shifting from a predominantly fruit-tree agricultural base—particularly apples and kiwis—toward viticulture.[11] Kibbutz member Steven Sherman attributed the transition to water constraints: apples required approximately 750 cubic meters of water per dunam annually, kiwis more than 1,000, and wine grapes about 200.[11] Competition from large farms and difficulty finding markets for the kibbutz's fruit were also cited as factors.[11]

The kibbutz had begun planting wine grapes approximately 12–15 years before the 2009 report and was then cultivating 145 dunams of them.[11] Tzova Winery was established in 2005 as an estate winery in a building beside an ancient winepress.[6] By 2018, its vineyards covered approximately 400 dunams and it produced around 60,000 bottles annually. Its flagship wine, Metzuda, was described as a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Malbec aged for 24 months in barrels.[12] Earlier wines also received industry awards: the 2006 Belmont white won a gold medal at the 2008 Golden Bunch awards, while the 2005 Merlot received a Best Value Award from Wine and Gourmet.[11]

Kibbutz members established the Belmont Hotel around 2000 to accommodate pilgrims expected in Jerusalem for the millennium celebrations and named it after the nearby Crusader fortress.[6] The hotel was described as containing 64 rooms in two-story stone buildings, with balconies facing the surrounding landscape.[6] Tourism activities have also included the Kiftzuba amusement park, rural lodging, Friday brunch, and guided visits to Ein Tzova and the Crusader fortress.[6]

Tel Tzova is a hill within the kibbutz boundaries that has been designated as a historic site and nature reserve.[2] Its summit contains the remains of the Crusader fortress of Belmont, an Arab village, ancient burial caves, water holes, and other structures.[7] A Ynet travel account says the site was named for Yigal ben Nathan of Zobah, identified in II Samuel 23 as one of King David's heroes.[2]

A centuries-old oak stands beside the remains of a Muslim cemetery associated with the former village. The 19th-century French traveler Victor Guérin recorded that local residents took him to see the tree, whose shade was said to shelter the whole village during hot weather.[4] One estimate places the oak's age at more than 700 years and that of a nearby olive tree at more than 600 years.[1] Another published estimate gives ages of approximately 800 and 1,200 years, respectively.[7]

Ein Tzova is an ancient spring reached through an underground tunnel. Visitors walk approximately 40 meters through the water to a chamber containing a main and secondary source and an original Herodian arch.[4] An aqueduct runs along a rock ledge to an ancient reservoir with a capacity of about 90 cubic meters; kibbutz members reportedly did not know of this reservoir when they built the present pool.[4] A separate account dates the spring system to about two thousand years ago and describes an arched chamber completed near the end of the Second Temple period, along with cisterns, canals, and collection pits cut into the rocky slope.[8] Kibbutz members later cleaned and developed the spring as a recreational site.[8]

Bamat Ha-Sela, among the vineyards between the hotel and Beit Nekofa, was used historically as a quarry and for pressing oil and wine, and later as a playground. It now contains a memorial to fallen kibbutz members.[4] Dozens of burial caves, many of them unexcavated, lie nearby.[4]

Kibbutz Tzova is a campus of the Jewish Agency's Ulpan Etzion program, a five-month residential course combining intensive Hebrew instruction and accommodation for college-educated immigrants aged 22–35.[13] The Jewish Agency also operates a Kibbutz Ulpan program at Tzova in a residential kibbutz setting. At Tzova, that program is open exclusively to college graduates and uses Hebrew courses based on the Ulpan Etzion model.[13]

A Jewish Agency profile recounts the experience of Florencia, a participant from Argentina who said, “Before attending Ulpan, I had zero Hebrew skills.” After five months, she reported reaching an intermediate level in reading, writing, and speaking.[14] She worked at a local kindergarten three days a week and joined Masa-organized trips around Israel every other week. The profile also recounts that she met Emanuel, a participant from Uruguay, in a beginner-level Hebrew class and that they became engaged by the end of the program.[14]

On September 12, 2025, a kitchen employee at the Belmont Hotel at Kibbutz Tzova attacked two guests in the dining room with a knife, seriously wounding one.[15][16] Bystanders overpowered the attacker, after which police detained him.[15] He was identified as Muhammad Shawarma, 42, from the Shuafat refugee camp in Jerusalem.[15] Three additional people were arrested on suspicion of involvement.[16] The Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center and the Foundation for Defense of Democracies characterized the incident as a terrorist attack.[15][16]