Al-Mujaydil

Last updated

Contents

al-Mujaydil
المْجيدل
Etymology: The little watch-tower [1]
Historical map series for the area of al-Mujaydil (1870s).jpg 1870s map
Historical map series for the area of al-Mujaydil (1940s).jpg 1940s map
Historical map series for the area of al-Mujaydil (modern).jpg modern map
Historical map series for the area of al-Mujaydil (1940s with modern overlay).jpg 1940s with modern overlay map
A series of historical maps of the area around Al-Mujaydil (click the buttons)
Mandatory Palestine location map.svg
Red pog.svg
al-Mujaydil
Location within Mandatory Palestine
Coordinates: 32°40′42″N35°14′39″E / 32.67833°N 35.24417°E / 32.67833; 35.24417
Palestine grid 173/231
Geopolitical entity Mandatory Palestine
Subdistrict Nazareth
Date of depopulation15 July 1948 [2]
Area
[3]
  Total
18,836  dunams (18.836 km2 or 7.273 sq mi)
Population
 (1945)
  Total
1,900 [4] [3]
Cause(s) of depopulationMilitary assault by Yishuv forces
Current Localities Migdal HaEmek, Yifat

Al-Mujaydil (Arabic : المْجيدل (also: al-Mujeidil [5] ) was an Arab-Palestinian village located 6 km southwest of Nazareth. Al-Mujaydil was one of a few towns that achieved local council status by the Mandatory Palestine government. In 1945, the village had a population of 1,900 and total land area of 18,836 dunams – mostly Arab-owned. The population was partly Christian and the town contained a Roman Catholic church and monastery.

After the 1948 depopulation of Palestine, it was destroyed and overbuilt by Migdal HaEmek.

History

Traces of a Roman road was found close to the village, which may indicate that the region was opened to intensive settlements as early as Roman times. [6]

Ottoman era

In the 1596 tax records, Al-Mujaydil was part of the Ottoman Empire, nahiyah (subdistrict) of Tabariyya under the Sanjak Safad, with a population of 4 Muslim families. The villagers paid a fixed tax rate of 25% on various agricultural products, including wheat and barley, fruit trees, as well as on goats and beehives; a total of 3,295 akçe. Half of the revenue went to a Waqf. [7] [8] In 1799 it was named Magidel in the map of Pierre Jacotin. [9]

C.R. Conder, of the PEF's Survey of Western Palestine , camped by the place in the 1870s, and described the village as a place being visited by missionaries. [10] The village was also described as being "flourishing", and built of stone and mud. It was on the northern side of a small plateau, and olive groves were cultivated to the south and to the east. The population size was estimated at 800 (in 1859), and they cultivated 100 faddans. [11]

In 1882, Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia, the brother of the Russian Tsar, visited the village, and donated money for the construction of a Russian Orthodox Church there in the hope that local Christians would be converted to the Orthodox faith. [12] However, the Patriarch of Jerusalem Nikodim opened the church to all denominations in the village and ensured it functioned most of the time as a village school. [13]

A population list from about 1887 showed that el Mujeidel had about 1,000 inhabitants; "for the greater part Muslims". [14]

In 1903, a Roman Catholic church was built in the village. It housed on its first floor a trilingual school for boys and girls, (teaching was in Arabic, Italian and French). It also housed a local clinic for the benefit of the villagers. [13]

British Mandate era

Mujeidel 1947 from Palmach archive Mujeidel.jpg
Mujeidel 1947 from Palmach archive

According to the British Mandate's 1922 census of Palestine, Mujaidel had 1,009 inhabitants; 817 Muslims and 192 Christians, [15] where 150 of the Christians were Orthodox, 33 Roman Catholics, 2 were Melkite and 7 were Anglicans. [16]

In 1930, the al-Huda mosque was built in the village, it was 12 meters high and 8 meters wide. A kuttab was nearby. The mosque was famous for the elaborate system it used to collect rainfall from its roof into a well. A tall minaret was added in the 1940s. [12]

By the 1931 census the population had increased to 1,241; 1,044 Muslims and 197 Christians, in a total of 293 houses. [17]

In the 1945 statistics the population of Mujeidil was 1,900; 1,640 Muslims and 260 Christians, [4] with a total of 18,836 dunams of land, according to an official land and population survey. [3] Of this, 1,719 dunams of land were for plantations and irrigable land, 15,474 for cereals, [18] while 34 dunams were built-up land. [19]

1948 and aftermath

Al-Mujaydil was occupied and captured by the Haganah's Golani Brigade during second half of Operation Dekel on 15 July 1948. The attack included a bombing raid by Israeli planes. [20] Most of the population fled to the nearby city of Nazareth, where they live as internal refugees.

In August 1948, a Jezreel Battalion Golani patrol encountered "groups of Arab women working fields" near Al-Mujaydil, and they reported that: "I [squad OC Shalom Lipman] ordered the machine-gun to fire three bursts over their heads, to drive them off. They fled in the direction of the olive grove...". But after the patrol left, the villagers returned. The patrol came back and encountered "a group of Arab men and women... I opened fire and killed a Palestinian man and one man and one woman were injured. In the two incidents, I expended 31 bullets." The following day, 6 August, the same patrol encountered two Arab funeral processions. The commander remarked dryly that "one can only assume that one of yesterday ´s wounded died." A day or two after, the patrol again encountered "a large group of Arab women in the fields of Mujeidil. When we approached them to drive them off, an Arab male [was found] hiding near them, [and] he was executed by us. The women were warned not to return to this area of Mujeidil." The company commander's commented: "Arab women repeatedly attempt to return to Mujeidil, and they are usually accompanied by men. I gave firm orders to stymie every attempt [lehasel kol nisayon] to return to the village of Mujeidil." [21]

However, in 1950, after intervention from the Pope Pius XII, the Palestinian Christians of the village were offered the opportunity to move back to the village, but refused to do so without their Muslim neighbours. Israel then destroyed half of the houses and one of the village mosques. [12]

The Israeli town of Migdal HaEmek was founded by Iranian Jews in 1952 on the Palestinian destroyed village land, less than 1 km southwest of the village site. Yifat, established in 1926 on what were traditionally village land, is 2 km to the west of the site of Al-Mujaydil. [22]

The Palestinian historian Walid Khalidi, described the remains of the village in 1992: "Most of the site is covered with a pine forest that serves as an Israeli park. The monastery and parts of the ( destroyed) church are the only remaining buildings on the site; monks still live in the monastery. Remnants of destroyed houses and the walls of a cemetery are visible. Cactuses and pomegranate, olive, and fig trees grow around the site, which is dotted with wells." [22]

Notable descendants

Diana Buttu. [23]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mi'ar</span> Palestinian village located 17.5 kilometers east of Acre

Mi'ar, was a Palestinian village located 17.5 kilometers east of Acre. Its population in 1945 was 770. The Crusaders referred to it as "Myary". By the 19th century, during Ottoman rule, it was a large Muslim village. The village was a center of Palestinian Arab rebel operations during the 1936–39 Arab revolt in Palestine against British rule and consequently the village was completely dynamited by the British. Mi'ar was later restored, but it was depopulated by Israeli forces during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. The Jewish communities of Atzmon, Ya'ad and Manof are located on former village land.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Al-Mansura, Acre</span> Village in Acre, Mandatory Palestine

Al-Mansura, was a Palestinian village that was depopulated by the Israeli army during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. In 1945, it had a population of 2,300 together with the neighboring villages of Dayr al-Qassi and Fassuta. The population was predominantly Christian and most its residents live in what is now the state of Israel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hittin</span> Place in Tiberias, Mandatory Palestine

Hittin was a Palestinian village located 8 kilometers (5 mi) west of Tiberias before it was occupied by Israel during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war when most of its original residents became refugees after being ethnically cleansed. As the site of the Battle of Hattin in 1187, in which Saladin reconquered most of Palestine from the Crusaders, it has become an Arab nationalist symbol. The shrine of Nabi Shu'ayb, venerated by the Druze and Sunni Muslims as the tomb of Jethro, is on the village land. The village was ruled by the Ottoman Empire from the 16th century until the end of World War I, when Palestine became part of the British Mandate for Palestine. On July 17 1948, the village was occupied by Israel during the nakbaa, after its residents fled out of their homes because of Nazareth's occupation. in later years, the Moshavs Arbel and Kfar Zeitim were erected where Hittin used to be.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ma'alul</span> Place in Nazareth, Mandatory Palestine

Ma'alul was a Palestinian village, with a mixed population of primarily Muslims with a substantial minority of Palestinian Christians, that was depopulated and destroyed by Israel during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. Located six kilometers west of the city of Nazareth, many of its inhabitants became internally displaced refugees, after taking refuge in Nazareth and the neighbouring town of Yafa an-Naseriyye. Despite having never left the territory that came to form part of Israel, the majority of the villagers of Maalul, and other Palestinian villages like Andor and Al-Mujidal, were declared "absentees", allowing the confiscation of their land under the Absentees Property Law.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nimrin</span> Place in Tiberias, Mandatory Palestine

Nimrin was a Palestinian Arab town of 320 that was captured and depopulated by Israel during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iraq Suwaydan</span> Place in Gaza, Mandatory Palestine

'Iraq Suwaydan was a Palestinian Arab village located 27 km (17 mi) northeast of Gaza City. It was captured by Israeli forces in Operation Yoav against the defending Egyptian Army during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. The village infrastructure, with the exception of the police station built by the British Mandate authorities, was destroyed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ijzim</span> Arab village in Mandatory Palestine

Ijzim was a Palestinian village in the Haifa Subdistrict of British Mandate Palestine, 19.5 kilometers south of Haifa, that was depopulated during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. Many residents resettled in Jenin after Operation Shoter on 24 July 1948.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bayt Jirja</span> Place in Gaza, Mandatory Palestine

Bayt Jirja or Beit Jerja was a Palestinian Arab village 15.5 km Northeast of Gaza. In 1931 the village consisted of 115 houses. It was overrun by Israeli forces during operation Yo'av in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. Bayt Jirja was found depopulated in November 1948, during "clean up sweeps" to expel any partial inhabited villages and destroy village housing to prevent any possible re-occupation in the area. The village was completely destroyed after the occupation and only one tomb remains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Islin</span> Place in Jerusalem, Mandatory Palestine

Islin was a Palestinian Arab village located 21 kilometers west of Jerusalem. The village had a population of 302 inhabitants and was depopulated during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. It was occupied by Israeli forces, possibly from the Fourth Battalion of the Harel Brigade, on 18 July 1948 during Operation Dani, causing its inhabitants to leave. Eshtaol, a moshav, was built on the village's land.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indur</span> Village in Nazareth, Mandatory Palestine

Indur was a Palestinian village, located 10.5 kilometres (6.5 mi) southeast of Nazareth. Its name preserves that of ancient Endor, a Canaanite city state thought to have been located 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) to the northeast. The village was depopulated during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War and its inhabitants became refugees, some of whom were internally displaced. In Israel today, there are a few thousand internally displaced Palestinians who hail from Indur, and continue to demand their right of return.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ein al-Zeitun</span> Village in Safad, Mandatory Palestine

Ein al-Zeitun, was a Palestinian Arab village, located 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) north of Safed in the Upper Galilee. During the early Ottoman period, Ein el-Zeitun had a mixed population of Muslims and Jews. Later, in the 19th century, it became entirely Muslim. The village's small population and land area as well as its proximity to Safad made it a suburb of the city. In 1945, the village had a population of 820 inhabitants and a total land area of 1,100 dunams. The village was depopulated in 1948, after the Ein al-Zeitun massacre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Al-Shajara, Palestine</span> Place in Tiberias, Mandatory Palestine

Al-Shajara was a Palestinian Arab village depopulated by Israel during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War when its residents were forcefully evacuated and became refugees. It was located 14 kilometers west of Tiberias on the main highway to Nazareth near the villages of Lubya and Hittin. The village was very close to the city of Nazareth, about 5 kilometers away.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Qalunya</span> Place in Jerusalem, Mandatory Palestine

Qalunya was a Palestinian village located 6 kilometers (3.7 mi) west of Jerusalem. Prior to the village's destruction in 1948, with the exception of 166 dunams, Qalunya's land was privately owned: 3,594 dunams were owned by Arabs, while 1,084 dunams were owned by Jews.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Al-Ja'una</span> Village in Safad, Mandatory Palestine

Al-Ja'una or Ja'ouna, was a Palestinian village situated in Galilee near al-Houleh Plateau, overlooking the Jordan Valley. The village lay on a hillside 450–500 meters above sea level, 5 kilometers east of Safad near a major road connecting Safad with Tabariya. The village had its Arab residents expelled by Zionist forces in 1948 and was thereafter resettled by Jews, becoming a part of the Israeli settlement of Rosh Pinna.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bayt Shanna</span> Place in Ramle, Mandatory Palestine

Bayt Shanna was a Palestinian Arab village in the Ramle Subdistrict of Mandatory Palestine. It was depopulated during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War on July 15, 1948, during the second stage of Operation Dani. It was located 11.5 km southeast of Ramla.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arab al-Zubayd</span> Village in Safad subdistrict, Mandatory Palestine

Arab al-Zubayd was a Palestinian village in the Safad Subdistrict. It was depopulated during the 1947–1948 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine on April 20, 1948, when the villagers fled on hearing the intentions of The Palmach's First Battalion of Operation Yiftach. It was located 15 km northeast of Safad, near the al-Mutilla-Safad—Tiberias highway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fara, Safad</span> Village in Safad, Mandatory Palestine

Fara was a Palestinian Arab village in the Safad Subdistrict. It was depopulated during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War on October 30, 1948, under Operation Hiram. It was located 11.5 km north of Safad on the Wadi al-Fara.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Al-'Ulmaniyya</span> Village in Safad, Mandatory Palestine

Al-'Ulmaniyya was a Palestinian Arab village in the Safad Subdistrict. It was depopulated during the 1947–1948 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine on April 20, 1948, by the Palmach's First Battalion of Operation Yiftach. It was located 14.5 km northeast of Safad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hadatha</span> Place in Tiberias, Mandatory Palestine

Hadatha, also El Hadetheh or Hadateh, was a Palestinian Arab village in the District of Tiberias, located 12.5 km southwest of Tiberias. It was depopulated in the 1947–1948 civil war in Mandatory Palestine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ma'dhar</span> Place in Tiberias, Mandatory Palestine

Ma'dhar was a Palestinian village in the Tiberias Subdistrict.

References

  1. Palmer, 1881, p. 114
  2. Morris, 2004, p. xvii, village #137. Also gives the cause of depopulation.
  3. 1 2 3 Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. 62
  4. 1 2 Department of Statistics, 1945, p. 8
  5. Morris, 2004
  6. Khalidi, 1992, p. 349
  7. Hütteroth and Abdulfattah, 1977, p. 187
  8. Note that Rhode, 1979, p. 6 Archived 2019-04-20 at the Wayback Machine writes that the register that Hütteroth and Abdulfattah studied was not from 1595/6, but from 1548/9
  9. Karmon, 1960, p. 167 Archived 2017-12-01 at the Wayback Machine
  10. Conder, 1878, p.158
  11. Conder and Kitchener, 1881, SWP I, p. 275. Quoted in Khalidi, 1992, p. 348
  12. 1 2 3 Pappé, 2006, p. 153
  13. 1 2 Pappé, 2006, pp. 152-153
  14. Schumacher, 1888, p. 182
  15. Barron, 1923, Table XI, Sub-district of Nazareth, p. 38
  16. Barron, 1923, Table XVI, p. 50
  17. Mills, 1932, p. 75
  18. Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. 110
  19. Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. 160
  20. Pappe, 2006, p. 172
  21. Jezreel Battalion HQ to Golani\Intelligence, 8 August 1948, IDFA 128\51\\32. The report says that the executions occurred on "3.8.48",- but this would seem to be an error; it should probably read "7.8.48." The use of the word lehasel, literally, "to liquidate" -is indicative. Also typical is the shift to passive mode when reporting the executions. Noted by Morris, 2004, p. 445-6, 460
  22. 1 2 Khalidi, 1992, p. 350
  23. Diana Buttu, 'The Myth of Coexistence in Israel,' New York Times 25 May 2021.

Bibliography