Al-Husayniyya
Encyclopedia
Al-Husayniyya was a Palestinian
village, depopulated in 1948.
On the 13th of May 1948, Haganah
paramilitary forces committed a crime by killing more than 30 children and women, which lead to the rest of people living in the village to flee and seek shelter in Lebanon
and Syria
.
, on a slightly elevated hill in the southwestern corner of the al-Hula Plain. It stood along the eastern side of a highway that led to Safad and Tiberias.
noted its ancient buildings and praised one of them, which he claimed had originally been a temple and perhaps was built by Solomon.
In 1944/45 a total of 3,388 dunums was allocated to cereals and 22 dunums were irrigated or used for orchards for Tuleil and Al-Husayniyya. The villagers also kept livestock, especially water buffalo, for ploughing, dairy production, and meat.
, "the village was completely evacuated". Some of the villagers who escaped the massacres may have remained or returned in subsequent days; according to Israeli military intelligence, the residents of al-Husayniyya did not leave until 21 April.
The settlement of Chulata
, established in 1937, is 3 km (2 mi) east of the site, near Tulayl. The settlement of Sde Eliezer
is on village land, about 1 km (0.621372736649807 mi) west of the village site.
The Palestinian
historian Walid Khalidi
described the place in 1992: "Only piles of stone and sections of walls from demolished houses remain. The site itself is overgrown with thorns, grasses, and scattered Christ’s-thorn trees, and is used as pasture. The land in the vicinity is cultivated."
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
village, depopulated in 1948.
On the 13th of May 1948, Haganah
Haganah
Haganah was a Jewish paramilitary organization in what was then the British Mandate of Palestine from 1920 to 1948, which later became the core of the Israel Defense Forces.- Origins :...
paramilitary forces committed a crime by killing more than 30 children and women, which lead to the rest of people living in the village to flee and seek shelter in Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
and Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
.
Location
The village was located 11 kilometres northeast of SafedSafed
Safed , is a city in the Northern District of Israel. Located at an elevation of , Safed is the highest city in the Galilee and of Israel. Due to its high elevation, Safed experiences warm summers and cold, often snowy, winters...
, on a slightly elevated hill in the southwestern corner of the al-Hula Plain. It stood along the eastern side of a highway that led to Safad and Tiberias.
History
The Arab geographer Yaqut al-HamawiYaqut al-Hamawi
Yāqūt ibn-'Abdullah al-Rūmī al-Hamawī) was an Islamic biographer and geographer renowned for his encyclopedic writings on the Muslim world. "al-Rumi" refers to his Greek descent; "al-Hamawi" means that he is from Hama, Syria, and ibn-Abdullah is a reference to his father's name, Abdullah...
noted its ancient buildings and praised one of them, which he claimed had originally been a temple and perhaps was built by Solomon.
In 1944/45 a total of 3,388 dunums was allocated to cereals and 22 dunums were irrigated or used for orchards for Tuleil and Al-Husayniyya. The villagers also kept livestock, especially water buffalo, for ploughing, dairy production, and meat.
1948, and aftermath
In March 1948, Palmahs 3rd Battalion raided the village, and blew up five houses and killed several dozen villagers. According to Palmah reports cited by MorrisBenny Morris
Benny Morris is professor of History in the Middle East Studies department of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in the city of Be'er Sheva, Israel...
, "the village was completely evacuated". Some of the villagers who escaped the massacres may have remained or returned in subsequent days; according to Israeli military intelligence, the residents of al-Husayniyya did not leave until 21 April.
The settlement of Chulata
Hulata
Hulata is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located in the Hula Valley, it falls under the jurisdiction of Upper Galilee Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 372....
, established in 1937, is 3 km (2 mi) east of the site, near Tulayl. The settlement of Sde Eliezer
Sde Eliezer
Sde Eliezer is a moshav in the Hula Valley in northern Israel. It is affiliated with the Mevo'ot HaHermon Regional Council. In 2007, the population was 700....
is on village land, about 1 km (0.621372736649807 mi) west of the village site.
The Palestinian
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
historian Walid Khalidi
Walid Khalidi
Walid Khalidi is an Oxford University-educated Palestinian historian who has written extensively on the Palestinian exodus. He is General Secretary and co-founder of the Institute for Palestine Studies, established in Beirut in December 1963 as an independent research and publishing center...
described the place in 1992: "Only piles of stone and sections of walls from demolished houses remain. The site itself is overgrown with thorns, grasses, and scattered Christ’s-thorn trees, and is used as pasture. The land in the vicinity is cultivated."
See also
- List of Arab towns and villages depopulated during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
- Killings and massacres during the 1948 Palestine War
External links
- al-Husayniyya, Palestine Remembered
- al-Husayniyya, Dr. Khalil Rizk.