Tabsur
Encyclopedia
Tabsur also Khirbat 'Azzun , was a Palestinian
village located 19 kilometres southwest of Tulkarem. In 1931, the village had 231 houses and an elementary school for boys. It was depopulated before the outbreak of 1948 Arab-Israeli war
.
pavement, and tombs.
In the late nineteenth century, Tabsur was described as a moderate-sized hamlet
with a well to the north. It was later classified as a hamlet by the Palestine Index Gazetteer.
During the British Mandate an elementary school for boys was established in the village. The village also had a few shops. In 1944/45 a total of 1,602 dunum
s was allocated to cereals, while 24 dunums were irrigated or used for orchards.
The Arabs of Tabsur were ordered to leave by the Haganah
on 3 April 1948 as part of its policy of evacuating Arab villages on the coastal plain. The villagers left on 16 April 1948.
Ra'anana
was established south of Tabsur in 1921. Now a city, some of its suburbs have expanded into land that once belonged to the village. Batzra
, founded in 1946 on village land, lies to the north.
In 1992, the Palestinian historian Walid Khalidi
wrote: "The village has been completely covered with Israeli citrus orchards, making it difficult to distinguish from the surrounding lands. Citrus and cypress trees grow on the village land."
The estimated number of Palestinian refugee
s from Tabsur in 1998 was 2,406.
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 19 kilometres southwest of Tulkarem. In 1931, the village had 231 houses and an elementary school for boys. It was depopulated before the outbreak of 1948 Arab-Israeli war
1948 Arab-Israeli War
The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known to Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation The war commenced after the termination of the British Mandate for Palestine and the creation of an independent Israel at midnight on 14 May 1948 when, following a period of civil war, Arab armies invaded...
.
History
Tabsur was established prior to the middle of the nineteenth-century on an archaeological site. The village contained archaeological remains, including the foundations of a building, a well, fragments of mosaicMosaic
Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral...
pavement, and tombs.
In the late nineteenth century, Tabsur was described as a moderate-sized hamlet
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
with a well to the north. It was later classified as a hamlet by the Palestine Index Gazetteer.
During the British Mandate an elementary school for boys was established in the village. The village also had a few shops. In 1944/45 a total of 1,602 dunum
Dunum
Dunum is a municipality in the district of Wittmund, in Lower Saxony, Germany....
s was allocated to cereals, while 24 dunums were irrigated or used for orchards.
The Arabs of Tabsur were ordered to leave by the 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 :...
on 3 April 1948 as part of its policy of evacuating Arab villages on the coastal plain. The villagers left on 16 April 1948.
Ra'anana
Ra'anana
Ra'anana is a city in the heart of the southern Sharon Plain of the Central District of Israel with a population of 68,300, . Ra'anana is bordered by Kfar Sava on the east and Herzliya on the southwest...
was established south of Tabsur in 1921. Now a city, some of its suburbs have expanded into land that once belonged to the village. Batzra
Batzra
Batzra is a moshav in central Israel. Located in the Sharon plain near Ra'anana, it was redeemed by South African Jewry. In 1947 it had a population of 80. It falls under the jurisdiction of Hof HaSharon Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 868....
, founded in 1946 on village land, lies to the north.
In 1992, the Palestinian 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...
wrote: "The village has been completely covered with Israeli citrus orchards, making it difficult to distinguish from the surrounding lands. Citrus and cypress trees grow on the village land."
The estimated number of Palestinian refugee
Palestinian refugee
Palestinian refugees or Palestine refugees are the people and their descendants, predominantly Palestinian Arabic-speakers, who fled or were expelled from their homes during and after the 1948 Palestine War, within that part of the British Mandate of Palestine, that after that war became the...
s from Tabsur in 1998 was 2,406.
See also
- AzzunAzzunAzzoun is a Palestinian town in the northern West Bank, located 24 kilometers south of Tulkarm and is a part of the Qalqilya Governorate. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, Azzoun had a population of approximately 8,300 in mid-year 2006...
- List of Arab towns and villages depopulated during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War