General Background

Kuḥlih is a historic Bedouin village whose existence predates the establishment of the State of Israel. The village is located north of Route 31, and is home to around 1,000 residents. In 1999, the Israeli government decided to recognize a village named “Mar’it”, which was divided into three separate villages: Drījāt, Makḥūl and Kuḥlih. Today, the village of Kuḥlih is one of the villages of the al-Qasum regional council. The village’s name stems from the nearby Khirbit Kuḥlih. The village contains caves, water cisterns, and the aforementioned Khirbih (ruin).

Services and Infrastructure

Within the recognized village of Kuḥlih there is one elementary school, whose students are bused in daily to the neighboring town of Ksīfih. There are no health services in Kuḥlih, so the villagers must travel to Ksīfih in order to receive health care.

Despite the state’s recognition of Kuḥlih, the village’s houses are not connected to the national electricity grid, and its residents must make do with solar panels. Nor are the houses connected to the water system, so the villagers run water through pipes to their homes, from a connection point on the main water pipe. The houses in the village are not connected to the waste removal system, and the village has no paved roads. Garbage removal services do not operate in Kuḥlih, except within the school property.

Planning Situation

Kuḥlih has a “blue line” which defines the village’s boundaries. However, lacking a detailed master plan, its residents are not able to request building permits. Without this planning, the village’s houses are subject to frequent house demolitions and there are currently pending demolition orders on some of its houses.