Daliyat al-Rawha'
Encyclopedia
Daliyat al-Rawha' was a Palestinian
village located 24.5 kilometres (15.2 mi) southeast of Haifa
. It was the site of the signing of a ceasefire agreement between the forces of the Mamluk
s and the Crusaders
in the 13th century. A small village of 60 Arab
Muslim
s in the late 19th century, the Jewish colony of Dalia was established on land purchased in the village in 1939. The population in 1945 reached 600 people: 280 Arabs and 320 Jews. It was depopulated of its Arab inhabitants in late March during the 1948 Palestine War
.
stayed in Daliyat al-Rawha' while his forces battled against those of the Crusaders
. According to Al-Maqrizi
, the two sides signed a temporary peace treaty (hudna
) in the village.
In 1859 the population was estimated to be about 60, who cultivated 10 faddans of land. At the end of the 19th century, Daliyat al-Rawha' is described by The Survey of Western Palestine (1881) as being situated on the west side of a watershed with a good spring close by on the south. The villagers, who were Muslim
s, also raised livestock. The village had a rectangular layout from east to west. The houses were grouped closely together and made of stone, held together with mud or cement. The main water sources for the village were located nearby.
By the 20th century, the Arabs of Daliyat al-Rawha were tenant farmers. The Palestine Jewish Colonization Association
(PICA) purchased 10,073 dunams of land in Daliyat al-Rawha and neighboring Umm ed-Dafuf (now Kibbutz Dalia) in 1936. The Jewish colony of Dalia
was established in 1939 to the south of the built up area of Daliyat al-Rawha' on village lands.
relates that Yosef Weitz
was concerned with the problem posed by Arab tenant farmers in the area as early as January 1948. A diary entry Weitz made following a meeting with officials of the Jewish National Fund
states:
to evict the tenant communities at Daliyat al-Rawha' and Buteimat.
The New York Times reports the village was captured on April 14, 1948, during the Battle of Mishmar HaEmek
. By mid-June 1948, according to David Ben-Gurion
as based on a report written by Weitz, Daliyat al-Rawha' had been destroyed by the Israeli authorities, while the destruction of Buteimat and Sabbarin
was about to begin. According to Morris, Ramot Menashe
was established on the village lands almost immediately thereafter. Khalidi writes that Ramot Menashe is actually located on the lands of neighboring Sabbarin.
In 1995, a committee representing internally displaced Palestinians
from Daliyat al-Rawha' joined the Association for the Defense of the Rights of the Internally Displaced (ADRID), a national committee in Israel
that advocates for these internal refugees' right of return
.
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 located 24.5 kilometres (15.2 mi) southeast of Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
. It was the site of the signing of a ceasefire agreement between the forces of the Mamluk
Mamluk
A Mamluk was a soldier of slave origin, who were predominantly Cumans/Kipchaks The "mamluk phenomenon", as David Ayalon dubbed the creation of the specific warrior...
s and the Crusaders
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...
in the 13th century. A small village of 60 Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s in the late 19th century, the Jewish colony of Dalia was established on land purchased in the village in 1939. The population in 1945 reached 600 people: 280 Arabs and 320 Jews. It was depopulated of its Arab inhabitants in late March during the 1948 Palestine War
1948 Palestine war
The 1948 Palestine war refers to the events in the British Mandate of Palestine between the United Nations vote on the partition plan on November 30, 1947, to the end of the first Arab-Israeli war on July 20, 1949.The war is divided into two phases:...
.
History
In 1281, the Mamluk sultan QalawunQalawun
Saif ad-Dīn Qalawun aṣ-Ṣāliḥī was the seventh Mamluk sultan of Egypt...
stayed in Daliyat al-Rawha' while his forces battled against those of the Crusaders
Crusaders
The Crusaders are a New Zealand professional rugby union team based in Christchurch that competes in the Super Rugby competition. They are the most successful team in Super Rugby history with seven titles...
. According to Al-Maqrizi
Al-Maqrizi
Taqi al-Din Ahmad ibn 'Ali ibn 'Abd al-Qadir ibn Muhammad al-Maqrizi ; Arabic: , was an Egyptian historian more commonly known as al-Maqrizi or Makrizi...
, the two sides signed a temporary peace treaty (hudna
Hudna
Hudna is an Arabic term meaning a temporary "truce" or "armistice" as well as "calm" or "quiet", coming from a verbal root meaning "calm". It is sometimes translated as "cease-fire"...
) in the village.
In 1859 the population was estimated to be about 60, who cultivated 10 faddans of land. At the end of the 19th century, Daliyat al-Rawha' is described by The Survey of Western Palestine (1881) as being situated on the west side of a watershed with a good spring close by on the south. The villagers, who were Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s, also raised livestock. The village had a rectangular layout from east to west. The houses were grouped closely together and made of stone, held together with mud or cement. The main water sources for the village were located nearby.
By the 20th century, the Arabs of Daliyat al-Rawha were tenant farmers. The Palestine Jewish Colonization Association
Palestine Jewish Colonization Association
The Palestine Jewish Colonization Association, commonly known by its Hebrew acronym PICA , was established in 1924 and played a major role in supporting the Yishuv in Palestine until its disbandment in 1957....
(PICA) purchased 10,073 dunams of land in Daliyat al-Rawha and neighboring Umm ed-Dafuf (now Kibbutz Dalia) in 1936. The Jewish colony of Dalia
Dalia (kibbutz)
Dalia is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located in the Galilee about 30 km southeast of Haifa, it falls under the jurisdiction of Megiddo Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 737.-The temporary settlement :...
was established in 1939 to the south of the built up area of Daliyat al-Rawha' on village lands.
1948 war, aftermath
Benny 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...
relates that Yosef Weitz
Yosef Weitz
Yosef Weitz was the director of the Land and Afforestation Department of the Jewish National Fund. From the 1930s, Weitz played a major role in acquiring land for the Yishuv, the pre-state Jewish community in Palestine.-Biography:...
was concerned with the problem posed by Arab tenant farmers in the area as early as January 1948. A diary entry Weitz made following a meeting with officials of the Jewish National Fund
Jewish National Fund
The Jewish National Fund was founded in 1901 to buy and develop land in Ottoman Palestine for Jewish settlement. The JNF is a quasi-governmental, non-profit organisation...
states:
"Is not now the time to be rid of them [he was referring specifically to the tenant farmers in Yoqne'am and Daliyat ar Ruha]? Why continue to keep in our midst these thorns at a time when they pose a danger to us? Our people are considering [solutions]."In March 1948, Weitz organized with the Jewish settlers of Kibbutz Kfar Masayrek
Kfar Masaryk
Kfar Masaryk is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located in the western Galilee near the Belus River and south of Acre, it falls under the jurisdiction of Mateh Asher Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 598....
to evict the tenant communities at Daliyat al-Rawha' and Buteimat.
The New York Times reports the village was captured on April 14, 1948, during the Battle of Mishmar HaEmek
Battle of Mishmar HaEmek
The Battle of Mishmar HaEmek was a ten-day battle fought from 4 to 15 April 1948 between the Arab Liberation Army commanded by Fawzi al-Qawuqji and the Haganah commanded by Yitzhak Sadeh...
. By mid-June 1948, according to David Ben-Gurion
David Ben-Gurion
' was the first Prime Minister of Israel.Ben-Gurion's passion for Zionism, which began early in life, led him to become a major Zionist leader and Executive Head of the World Zionist Organization in 1946...
as based on a report written by Weitz, Daliyat al-Rawha' had been destroyed by the Israeli authorities, while the destruction of Buteimat and Sabbarin
Sabbarin
Sabbarin is a former Palestinian Arab village located 28 kilometers south of Haifa. According to the 1931 census of Palestine, the village had a population of 1,108 inhabitants and the village's lands spanned 25,307 dunams.-History:...
was about to begin. According to Morris, Ramot Menashe
Ramot Menashe
Ramot Menashe is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located on the Menashe plateau between the Carmel mountain range and the Jezreel Valley, it falls under the jurisdiction of Megiddo Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 468...
was established on the village lands almost immediately thereafter. Khalidi writes that Ramot Menashe is actually located on the lands of neighboring Sabbarin.
In 1995, a committee representing internally displaced Palestinians
Internally displaced Palestinians
A present absentee is a Palestinian who fled or was expelled from his home in Palestine by Jewish or Israeli forces, before and during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war, but who remained within the area that became the state of Israel. Present absentees are also referred to as internally displaced...
from Daliyat al-Rawha' joined the Association for the Defense of the Rights of the Internally Displaced (ADRID), a national committee in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
that advocates for these internal refugees' right of return
Right of return
The term right of return refers to a principle of international law, codified in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, giving any person the right to return to, and re-enter, his or her country of origin...
.
External links
- Welcome To Daliyat al-Rawha'
- Daliyat al-Rawha' from the Khalil Sakakini Cultural CenterKhalil Sakakini Cultural CenterKhalil Sakakini Cultural Center is an organization established in 1996. It is located at 4 Raja Street, Ramallah in the West Bank. The traditional manor that houses the centre was the former family home of Khalil Salem Salah, the mayor of Ramallah between 1947/1951, is now owned by the Palestinian...