Al-Ras al-Ahmar | |
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| Etymology: the red head or hill-top[1] | |
.jpg) 1870s map.jpg) 1940s map.jpg) modern map.jpg) 1940s with modern overlay mapA series of historical maps of the area around Al-Ras al-Ahmar (click the buttons) | |
  Al-Ras al-Ahmar Location withinMandatory Palestine | |
| Coordinates:33°2′21″N35°28′11″E / 33.03917°N 35.46972°E /33.03917; 35.46972 | |
| Palestine grid | 194/271 |
| Geopolitical entity | Mandatory Palestine |
| Subdistrict | Safad |
| Date of depopulation | October 30, 1948[4] |
| Area | |
• Total | 7,934dunams (7.934 km2; 3.063 sq mi) |
| Population (1945) | |
• Total | 620[2][3] |
| Cause(s) of depopulation | Military assault byYishuv forces |
| Current Localities | Kerem Ben Zimra[5] |
Al-Ras al-Ahmar was aPalestinian Arab village in theSafad Subdistrict. It was depopulated during the1948 Arab–Israeli War on October 30, 1948, by the Israeli7th Armored Brigade duringOperation Hiram. It was located 8.5 km north ofSafad.
Remains found in the village indicate that it was populated during theByzantine era.[5]
Incorporated into theOttoman Empire in 1517 with the rest of Palestine, in 1596 it appeared under the name ofRas al-Ahmar in thetax registers as part of thenahiya (subdistrict) of Jira in theSafad Sanjak. It had an allMuslim population, consisting of 54 households and 22 bachelors; an estimated 418 persons. They paid taxes on agricultural products, including wheat, barley, vineyards, "kirsanna", goats and beehives, in addition to occasional revenues and an olive oil or grape syrup press; the taxes totalled 5,500akçe. Half of the revenues went to aWaqf.[5][6][7]
In 1838er-Ras al-Ahmar was noted as a village located in the Safad district.[8][9]
Algerian followers ofAbdelkader El Djezairi have been defeated by the French in Algeria, and sought refuge in another part of the Ottoman Empire. They were settled in various locations inOttoman Syria, including Al-Ras al-Ahmar.[10]
In 1875Victor Guérin found that the village was situated 844 meters above sea level, and contained 150 Muslims.[11]
In 1881 thePEF'sSurvey of Western Palestine described the village "Well-built stone houses. containing 350 Algerian Moslems, situated on high hill, with gardens down the slopes. There is a perennial supply of good water in Wâdy Râs el Ahmar."[12]
A population list from about 1887 showedRas el Ahmar to have about 690 Muslim inhabitants.[13]
In the1922 census of Palestine conducted by theBritish Mandate authorities, Al-Ras al-Ahmar had a population of 405; all Muslims,[14] increasing slightly in the1931 census to 447; 6 Christians and 441 Muslims, in a total of 92 houses.[15]
In the1945 statistics, al-Ras al-Ahmar had a population of 620, all Muslims,[2] and a land area of 7,934dunams.[3] Of this, 1,008 dunams were plantations and irrigable land, 4,728 were used for cereals,[16] while 61 dunams were classified as built-up, or urban area.[17]An elementary school for boys was founded during this period.[5]
Ras al-Ahmar was on the border between the territories allotted to the Arab and to the Jewish state under the 1947UN Partition Plan.[18]
In March 1948, a British medical officer reported that the village of Al-Ras al-Ahmar was completely unprepared for war.[19]
The fall ofSafad and the expulsion of its Arab inhabitants in May 1948, "severely undermined" the morale of surrounding villages, including Al-Ras al-Ahmar, according toHaganah Intelligence sources. They reported that the villagers "had decided to abandon their villages if the Arabs of Safad surrender."[20]
In October 1948Operation Hiram took place, where the operational orders to the Israeli troop were "to occupy the whole of the Galilee”. On the 30 October 1948, the 71st Battalion from the7th Armored Brigade took Ras al-Ahmar, together withRehaniya,Alma andDayshum.[21] Word of theJish andSafsaf massacres had apparently spread to Ras al-Ahmar, as the village was largely empty when the 7th Brigade arrived.[22]
By mid-June, 1949, the village lands of Al-Ras al-Ahmar were settled by Jewishimmigrants as part of the policy ofJudaisation of Northern Israel.[23]
In 1992 it was noted about "Some houses still remain. One house has a front stairway, and a covered garage that apparently was added by the Israelis who live there. Another house has two high, arched windows. The site also contains stone rubble from destroyed houses, and a few fig trees and cactuses. The nearby settlement cultivates some of the surrounding land and uses the rest for grazing."[5]
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