Yasuf
Encyclopedia
Yasuf is a Palestinian
town located in the Salfit Governorate
in the northern West Bank
, 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) northeast of Salfit
, 37 kilometres (23 mi) southwest of Nablus
and adjacent to the Israeli settlement
of Kfar Tapuach
. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics
, it had a population of approximately 1,761 in mid-2006. About 87% of the population relies on agriculture for income, while the remainder work in the public sector.
over Palestine
(c. 63 BCE-330 CE), the village was known as Yaashuv, and it was one of three important markets for fruits, grains and legumes in the northern Judean mountains
, southern Samaria
, and the region of Lod
.
During the Crusader
period, Diya' al-Din (1173–1245) writes that there was a rural mosque in Yasuf, indicating that there was a significant Muslim population in the village at the time.
In The Survey of Western Palestine (1882), Yasuf is described as, "an ancient village," located in a valley, with a Roman road
passing nearby. Inside the village is "a good spring ... and olives. A beautiful garden of pomegranates exists north of the spring. The water comes out of a cleft in a cliff, near which is an ancient well with steps. There is a sacred place, with a large oak (Sindian), and a ruined shrine, south-west of the village, near 'Ain er Raja. There are drafted stones in many houses, and remains of well-built enclosures, now ruined. Many well-cut rock tombs are also found on either side." It is further noted that the village is mentioned by name in the Samaritan
Book of Joshua, and in the 'Samaritan Chronicle', its ancient name is recorded as Jusepheh.
Also in the village were, "rock-cut tombs with kokiin [...]". A subterranean channel led out from the spring that contained small fish and there were pillar shafts there too. To the west of the village under an oak tree lay the ruins of a maqam
for Sheikh
Abu Hasan among the remains of other old drystone enclosures. To the north of the maqam was a rock-cut tomb, "with three lociili under arcosolia." Tombs also lay to the northeast and southwest with well-cut arched doors. In the valley to the northwest was a modern vault
with a mihrab
.
In January 2010, the extremist settler Rabbi Yitzhak Shapira
was arrested by the Israeli police for alleged involvement in the torching of the mosque. He denied any involvement, and was later released due to lack of evidence.
In April 2010, the settlers spray-painted elsewhere in the village the words "Thank you God, for not making me a Gentile".
Palestinian territories
The Palestinian territories comprise the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Since the Palestinian Declaration of Independence in 1988, the region is today recognized by three-quarters of the world's countries as the State of Palestine or simply Palestine, although this status is not recognized by the...
town located in the Salfit Governorate
Salfit Governorate
The Salfit Governorate is one of 16 Governorates of the Palestinian National Authority. It is located in the northwestern West Bank, bordered by the governorates of Ramallah and al-Bireh to the south, Nablus to the east and Qalqilya in the north as well as, Israel to the west. Its district capital...
in the northern West Bank
West Bank
The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
, 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) northeast of Salfit
Salfit
Salfit also spelled Salfeet is a Palestinian town in the central West Bank. Salfit is located at an altitude of in the central Samarian highlands adjacent to the Israeli settlement of Ariel. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the City had a population of 8,796 in 2007....
, 37 kilometres (23 mi) southwest of Nablus
Nablus
Nablus is a Palestinian city in the northern West Bank, approximately north of Jerusalem, with a population of 126,132. Located in a strategic position between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, it is the capital of the Nablus Governorate and a Palestinian commercial and cultural center.Founded by the...
and adjacent to the Israeli settlement
Israeli settlement
An Israeli settlement is a Jewish civilian community built on land that was captured by Israel from Jordan, Egypt, and Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War and is considered occupied territory by the international community. Such settlements currently exist in the West Bank...
of Kfar Tapuach
Kfar Tapuach
Kfar Tapuach is an Israeli settlement in the West Bank, founded in 1978. It sits astride one of the major traffic junctions in the West Bank. The executive director of the village council is Yisrael Blunder. As of December 2007, it had 800 residents...
. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics
Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics
The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics is the statistical organization under the umbrella of the Palestinian Cabinet of the Palestinian National Authority....
, it had a population of approximately 1,761 in mid-2006. About 87% of the population relies on agriculture for income, while the remainder work in the public sector.
History
At the time of Roman ruleRoman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
over Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
(c. 63 BCE-330 CE), the village was known as Yaashuv, and it was one of three important markets for fruits, grains and legumes in the northern Judean mountains
Judean Mountains
The Judaean Mountains, ;, also Judaean Hills and Hebron Hills is a mountain range in Israel and the West Bank where Jerusalem and several other biblical cities are located. The mountains reach a height of 1,000 m.-Geography:...
, southern Samaria
Samaria
Samaria, or the Shomron is a term used for a mountainous region roughly corresponding to the northern part of the West Bank.- Etymology :...
, and the region of Lod
Lod
Lod is a city located on the Sharon Plain southeast of Tel Aviv in the Center District of Israel. At the end of 2010, it had a population of 70,000, roughly 75 percent Jewish and 25 percent Arab.The name is derived from the Biblical city of Lod...
.
During the Crusader
Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars, blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church with the main goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem...
period, Diya' al-Din (1173–1245) writes that there was a rural mosque in Yasuf, indicating that there was a significant Muslim population in the village at the time.
In The Survey of Western Palestine (1882), Yasuf is described as, "an ancient village," located in a valley, with a Roman road
Roman road
The Roman roads were a vital part of the development of the Roman state, from about 500 BC through the expansion during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate. The Roman road system spanned more than 400,000 km...
passing nearby. Inside the village is "a good spring ... and olives. A beautiful garden of pomegranates exists north of the spring. The water comes out of a cleft in a cliff, near which is an ancient well with steps. There is a sacred place, with a large oak (Sindian), and a ruined shrine, south-west of the village, near 'Ain er Raja. There are drafted stones in many houses, and remains of well-built enclosures, now ruined. Many well-cut rock tombs are also found on either side." It is further noted that the village is mentioned by name in the Samaritan
Samaritan
The Samaritans are an ethnoreligious group of the Levant. Religiously, they are the adherents to Samaritanism, an Abrahamic religion closely related to Judaism...
Book of Joshua, and in the 'Samaritan Chronicle', its ancient name is recorded as Jusepheh.
Also in the village were, "rock-cut tombs with kokiin [...]". A subterranean channel led out from the spring that contained small fish and there were pillar shafts there too. To the west of the village under an oak tree lay the ruins of a maqam
Maqam
- Musical structures :* Arabic maqam, melodic modes* Mugam genre of Azeri-speaking cultures* Maqam al-iraqi genre of Iraq* Weekly Maqam prayer services of Sephardic Jewish culture* Makam, melody types of Turkey* Muqam, melody type of Uyghur culture...
for Sheikh
Sheikh
Not to be confused with sikhSheikh — also spelled Sheik or Shaikh, or transliterated as Shaykh — is an honorific in the Arabic language that literally means "elder" and carries the meaning "leader and/or governor"...
Abu Hasan among the remains of other old drystone enclosures. To the north of the maqam was a rock-cut tomb, "with three lociili under arcosolia." Tombs also lay to the northeast and southwest with well-cut arched doors. In the valley to the northwest was a modern vault
Vault (architecture)
A Vault is an architectural term for an arched form used to provide a space with a ceiling or roof. The parts of a vault exert lateral thrust that require a counter resistance. When vaults are built underground, the ground gives all the resistance required...
with a mihrab
Mihrab
A mihrab is semicircular niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the qibla; that is, the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca and hence the direction that Muslims should face when praying...
.
Israeli-Palestinian conflict
On 11 December 2009, Yasuf's Al-Kabir Mosque was vandalized and burnt. Israeli police suspect the action was undertaken by Israeli settlers. Prayer carpets and holy books were destroyed in the fire, and the arsonists left behind graffiti reading, "We will burn all of you," and, "Prepare to pay the price." A few months previous radical settlers declared that Palestinians in the West Bank would pay a "price tag" every time Israeli forces dismantled illegal Israeli settlement structures. Following the incident, Israeli forces opened fire on 100 Palestinian residents of the village who were protesting the arson.In January 2010, the extremist settler Rabbi Yitzhak Shapira
Yitzhak Shapira
Yitzhak Shapira is an Israeli rabbi who in 2009 published a book in which he writes that it is permissible for Jews to kill non-Jews who threaten Israel...
was arrested by the Israeli police for alleged involvement in the torching of the mosque. He denied any involvement, and was later released due to lack of evidence.
In April 2010, the settlers spray-painted elsewhere in the village the words "Thank you God, for not making me a Gentile".