It covers an area of the West Bank, south of Jerusalem.

[2] According to United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the governorate has a total area of around 660 km2.

At the 2006 Palestinian legislative election the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and The Alternative both had their best votes there.

Its current governor is Muhammad Taha Hassan Abu Alia.

The governorate consists of 10 municipalities, 3 refugee camps, and 58 rural districts.