Located in the Hula Valley, Kiryat Shmona is Israelzzz*zs northernmost city. Embedded between the Natfatli Hills and the Golan Heights, the city is a major tourist attraction due to its beautiful landscape and views of neighboring countries, Lebanon and Syria.

Founded in 1949, the city sits on the lands of the Arab village, Khalsa. According to the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics, in 2008, the city had a Jewish majority of 97.9 percent. It also had a very young population with one-third of its members aged less than 19 years, according to CBS estimates.

Besides tourism, Kiryat Shmona also garners revenue from agriculture and manufacturing. Due to its proximity to Lebanon, the city has often been in the news for cross-border attacks. During the 1970s, Kiryat Shmona was the target of PLO factions in Lebanon, and in August 2006 when Israel invaded Lebanon, was hit by as many as 1,000 rockets fired by Hezbollah.