Jericho is believed to be the oldest city in the world, although it has not been inhabited continuously since the first settlement there about 8,000 BC. Archeologists detected signs that hunter-gatherers may have built a shrine there as far back as 9,700 BC. The earliest farmers of the Levant tilled the soil and built huts in the spring there. A perennial spring and the oasis it waters were the attractions of early settlers.
Age without turmoil is an anachronism in the Middle East. Jericho through the years has been the site of conquests, destruction and reconstruction: Egyptians around the 15th-14th century BC, Israelits after the 13th century BC, Babylonians, Alexander the Great's Greek armies, Romans, Arabs, Ottomans, and finally, in the 20th century, British and Israeli occupiers until, in 2005, Israel returned the city's security controls to Palestinian Arabs.
The 2005 transfer of power was mostly symbolic, meant as a first stage toward Palestinian control on the way to independence. Israel lifted its checkpoint at the northwest entrance to the city, removing what had been perennial and aggravating delays for city residents leaving and entering the city.
Once a favorite Israeli destination because of its casino (and gambling being illegal in Israel), Israel banned travel to Jericho by Israelis following the outbreak of hostilities in late 2000. The casino had been a major source of revenue for the town. It shut down for lack of gamblers, eliminating jobs and resources for Jericho.
