Tekoa, Gush Etzion

Tekoa תְּקוֹעַ‎
View of Herodium from Tekoa
Tekoa
Coordinates: 31°39′10.86″N 35°13′44.52″E / 31.6530167°N 35.2290333°E / 31.6530167; 35.2290333Coordinates: 31°39′10.86″N 35°13′44.52″E / 31.6530167°N 35.2290333°E / 31.6530167; 35.2290333
District	Judea and Samaria Area
Council	Gush Etzion
Region	West Bank
Founded	1975, 1977
Founded by	Nahal
Population (2015)	3,495

Tekoa (Hebrew: תְּקוֹעַ‎) is an Israeli settlement organized as a communal settlement in the West Bank. Located 20 km northeast of Hebron, 16 km south of Jerusalem and in the immediate vicinity is the Palestinian village of Tuqu', it falls under the jurisdiction of Gush Etzion Regional Council. In 2015 it had a population of 3,495.

The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.

Tekoa was established in 1975 as a Nahal outpost in the vicinity of the Arab village of Tuqu'. In 1977 it was handed over to civilian residents. The town is located 5 miles south of Bethlehem at the foot of Herodion ("Herod's Palace").

The Archaeological site of El Khiam is located in this area.

Letters of Shimon Ben Kosiba, leader of the Jewish Bar Kokhba revolt against Roman occupation (132-135 CE), were found in a valley near Tekoa.

Ancient caves and caves that were dug in the karst chalk stone of the Nachal Tekoa or Wadi Khureitun, named after Chariton the Confessor, by monks from the Lavras of Saint Chariton and his successor Euthymius the Great, are right behind Tekoa.