Established in 1949 Kiryat Shmona, which means town of the eight was named after the eight people, including Joseph Trumpeldor who died in 1920 defending Tel Hai. The is a city is in the Northern District of Israel on the western slopes of the Hula Valley near the Lebanese border. The In 2015 it had a population of 23,076 It is Israel’s northernmost city. Today it is a major urban center and continues to grow.
The first residents were fourteen Yemenites who arrived on July 18, 1949 and were followed by more Yemenites a month later. By July 1951, the population had grown to nearly 4,000. In 1953, Kiryat Shmona become a development town.
Kiryat Shmona is located in the Finger of the Galilee next to the Hula Valley, about 5 kilometres (3 miles) south and 2 km (1 mile) east of the Israel–Lebanon border. Its elevation is about 150 metres (492 feet) above sea level.The city is located above the Dead Sea transform fault, and as a result, is one of the cities in Israel most at risk to earthquakes.
The city has diverse economy based on light industry comprising of communications and electronics as well as agriculture and tourism. The city is famous for its a cable car link with Manara above in the Naftali mountain range and is home to an activity center and toboggan run located in the south of the town.
Kiryat Shmona is the smallest city in Israel with a major football club, Hapoel Ironi Kiryat Shmona. The club was formed through a merger between Hapoel Kiryat Shmona and Maccabi Kiryat Shmona in 2000 and went on to win promotion to the top division after the 2006–07 season. They won the Israeli Premier League Championship in 2011–2012. Another successful sport has been tennis which plays a major part in Kiryat Shmona sport scene.
The city features an urban park called HaZahav which means gold. The park is named after the Ein Zahav stream which runs through it. The source of the Stream is Ein Zahav ‘golden spring’. The park covers 11 hectares and is situated in the centre of the city. In addition to activity areas the park has a diverse protected natural area comprising Ein Zahav Stream and HaTachanot Stream. (Tachanot refers to two water mills which were active along this stream in the past), which flow through the middle of the park. These streams have created different aquatic habitats, including shallow sections, rapids, deep sections and pools that support diverse riparian vegetation that has developed with time into a riparian forest which is unusual in Israel. The park trail is worth walking as it goes through the forest and along the stream.