| Khiam | |
| Native Name: | الخيام |
| Native Name Lang: | ara |
| Settlement Type: | City |
| Pushpin Map: | Lebanon |
| Pushpin Map Alt: | Map showing the location of Deir Mimas within Lebanon |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location within Lebanon |
| Coordinates: | 33.3272°N 35.6111°W |
| Grid Position: | 137/154L |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: |  |
| Subdivision Type1: | Governorate |
| Subdivision Name1: | Nabatieh Governorate |
| Subdivision Type2: | District |
| Subdivision Name2: | Marjeyoun District |
| Elevation M: | 1265 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Timezone1: | EET |
| Utc Offset1: | +2 |
| Timezone1 Dst: | EEST |
| Utc Offset1 Dst: | +3 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code |
| Area Code Type: | Dialing code |
| Area Code: | +961 |
Khiam (Arabic: الخيام; sometimes spelled Khiyam) is a large town in the Nabatieh Governorate of Southern Lebanon.
Khiam is situated approximately 100km (100miles) south from the capital city of Beirut and 35km (22miles) south-east from the city of Nabatieh. The border with Israel is 5km (03miles) to the south. Khiam lies at a height of 800m (2,600feet) above sea level.
E. H. Palmer wrote that the name means "The tents".[1]
Haifa Nassar, a Khiyam-based journalist, highlights various theories and references, many of which suggest that the name stems from the word "tent." One prominent but unverified theory is mentioned by Muhammad Qubaisi in his book South Lebanon. He notes that, according to the Torah, Jacob moved his family and livestock to northern Palestine and settled in the plain of Al-Khiam, where he lived in tents.[2]
In 1596, it was named as a village, Hiyam, in the Ottoman nahiya (subdistrict) of Tibnin under the liwa' (district) of Safad, with a population of 111 households and 7 bachelors, all Muslim. The villagers paid a tax on agricultural products, such as wheat, barley, olive trees, vineyards, goats and beehives, in addition to "occasional revenues"; a total of 6,914 akçe.[3] [4]
In 1838, Eli Smith noted it as el-Khiyam; a Metawileh, "Greek" Christian and Maronite village in Merj 'Ayun.[5]
In 1875, Victor Guérin visited: "El Khiam contains two quarters: the one on the south, with a population of 700 Metawileh, and the other on the north, with 600 Christians, divided into Maronites, Greek-Orthodox, and Greek-Catholics, with some Protestants, who have founded a chapel and a school."[6]
In 1881, the PEF's Survey of Western Palestine (SWP) described it as: "A village, north-east of the Merj Ayun, built of stone, containing about 300 Christians and 200 Druzes. It contains a white round Moslem holy place and a modern church. It is situated on a low ridge, surrounded by figs, olives, and arable. The water supply is from three rock-cut cisterns, one birket, and the good spring of 'Ain ed Derdarah."[7]
The municipality of Al-Khiyam was established in 1928 during the French Mandate, following a brief attempt during the Ottoman period in 1916. The first municipal council, led by Haj Mohammad Haj Hussein Abdullah, was dissolved in 1931.
In 1935, Haj Ali Afandi Haj Ibrahim Abdullah was elected as the new mayor. In 1937, he was appointed as a deputy in the Lebanese parliament during the French Mandate, leading to his resignation as mayor.[8]
In 1953, Haj Khalil Haidar was re-elected as mayor and served until 1957. In 1957, Hassan Ali Faiz Abdullah was appointed as the mayor and served until 1963. A new council was elected in 1963, with 16 members, and Kamel Mohammad Ali Al-Daoui as the mayor and Haj Asaad Khalil Mhana as the deputy mayor. This council continued its work until the outbreak of the Lebanese Civil War in 1975.[9]
During the 1990s, Khiam became known for the Khiam Prison, operated by the Israeli-backed South Lebanon Army during the Israeli occupation of Southern Lebanon. Lebanese Muslim civilians were exposed to torture by Israeli and Lebanese agents in this camp and faced indefinite detention once arrested.[10] The prison was captured by Hezbollah during the Battle of Khiam in 2000, shortly before the Israeli withdrawal from South Lebanon.
The town saw a major confrontation between the Israeli Army and Hezbollah fighters in the 2006 Lebanon War, during which a United Nations post was bombed by the Israeli Army killing four United Nations Military Observers.[11] The IDF and Hezbollah clashed in the area once again in June 2024, with fighter jets and artillery strikes.[12] [13]
