Ma'ale Efrayim (West Bank)

Ma'ale Efrayim (Hebrew: מַעֲלֵה אֶפְרַיִם, lit. Ascent of Ephraim) is an Israeli settlement in the West Bank, organized as a secular settlement and a local council, located along the eastern slopes of the Samarian mountains in the Jordan Valley. It was founded in 1978 and named after the Biblical tribe of Ephraim. The settlement's municipal status was upgraded to local council in 1981. In 2022, it had a population of 1,377. The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.